I-10 Bridge Tolls and Trump Naming Push Left Out of Speeches at Mobile Groundbreaking

MOBILE, Ala. — Speaker after speaker at Friday’s groundbreaking for the new Interstate 10 river crossing credited President Donald Trump and his administration for clearing the way. But two of the most politically sensitive questions surrounding the project, the I-10 bridge tolls drivers will pay and what the bridge will be named, went largely unaddressed from the podium.

The ceremony at Cooper Riverside Park in downtown Mobile marked the start of construction on the Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project, which is expected to relieve one of the Southeast’s best-known traffic bottlenecks. It took place several hours before Trump was scheduled to hold a midterm election rally at the 10,000-seat Mitchell Center on the University of South Alabama campus.

“There are so many people who made this happen,” said Republican U.S. Sen. Katie Britt. “This is a testament when local, state and federal leaders work together as a team.”

She added, “This would not have happened without President Trump.”

Credit Shared Across Party Lines

Democratic U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures of Mobile also credited the Trump administration for helping move the project to construction. He made a point of recognizing former President Joe Biden’s administration as well, which awarded a $550 million federal grant that remains the largest single direct financial investment in the project.

“I do want to thank the Trump administration for their role in getting us here,” Figures said. “But I would be remiss not to thank the Biden administration as well.”

Trump’s role was a running theme throughout the program. Speakers repeatedly pointed to the administration’s approval of the financing structure that finally allowed construction to begin. Britt and U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville both recounted their conversations with U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and other administration officials, and Duffy delivered a brief impression of the president describing Trump’s wish to prioritize the I-10 project.

The visit was Trump’s first trip to Mobile in nearly a decade and his first appearance in Alabama since he delivered a commencement address at the University of Alabama in May 2025.

The Naming Question

The future name of the 215-foot-tall cable-stayed span did not come up in public remarks during the ceremony. Asked afterward what the bridge should be called, Britt said she would have to “get back with you.”

In recent weeks, some Alabama Republicans have suggested naming the bridge for Trump or for the Gulf of America. U.S. Rep. Barry Moore of Enterprise, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, has floated the name “Gateway to the Gulf of America, the Donald J. Trump Bridge.” Other Republican lawmakers in the state have also voiced support for naming it after the president.

Others have suggested different ideas, including honoring the late singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett, who grew up on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Buffett’s music was performed before Friday’s ceremony by the Excelsior Band and the University of South Alabama wind ensemble.

Britt said lawmakers will ultimately have to consider Trump’s role in advancing the project when they settle on a name.

“This doesn’t happen without President Trump and his leadership here,” she said. “We’ve been talking about (this bridge project) for the last 29 to 30 years, in a very thoughtful way. It was dreamed up even before that.”

Wahl Backs Trump Name

John Wahl, the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, did not speak at the event but said the naming discussion is ongoing.

“The conversation over the bridge name is still unfolding,” Wahl said. Like Moore, he supports naming the bridge after Trump.

“He deserves it,” said Wahl, who would serve on the Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority if elected. “He’s been incredibly good for the State of Alabama. In my lifetime, I don’t think we’ve had a president who has done as much for our state. That deserves recognition. His work on this bridge project has been clear. Other bridge projects haven’t gotten a greenlight, but we got it.”

Wahl faces Democratic state Rep. Phillip Ensler of Montgomery in the Nov. 3 general election.

Local Officials Focus on the Commute

Local officials have said the name matters less than getting the bridge built and improving the trip across Mobile Bay. Mobile City Councilman Ben Reynolds has said he would be open to naming the bridge after Trump if doing so somehow led to the federal loan being forgiven and eliminated the need for tolls.

Trump Raises It Himself

The subject did come up later in the day. At his rally Friday evening, Trump pointed to the groundbreaking and to Duffy’s work, saying the project was “all made possible with $3 billion in funding from the Trump administration.”

“This is the largest infrastructure project in the history of Alabama so far, so Tommy, please, no overruns,” Trump said, addressing Tuberville. He then raised the naming idea himself.

“Maybe I’ll be happy and they’ll name the damn bridge after me,” he said.

Earlier in the evening, Moore again suggested “The Gateway to the Gulf of America Donald J. Trump Bridge.” A message was left with the White House asking whether Trump supports Moore’s suggestion.

The Toll Question

Officials described the administration’s approval of a two-phase construction plan, announced in July, as the key to making the project financially workable. That restructuring allows the first phase to move ahead, but it depends heavily on a toll plan that remains controversial seven years after an earlier, less expensive proposal was abandoned amid strong public opposition.

The first phase, estimated at $4.15 billion, includes the new Mobile River bridge and restriping of the existing Bayway to provide three lanes in each direction from downtown Mobile to the U.S. 98 interchange in Daphne. State officials also plan to extend the widened interstate east to the State Route 181 interchange in Malbis. Some officials have described phase one as a roughly $3.2 billion project.

The second phase would demolish the existing Bayway and replace it with a larger elevated structure. No funding source, timeline or cost estimate has been announced for that work.

What Drivers Will Pay

Phase one is financed largely through toll revenue. The bridge will use all-electronic, free-flow tolling, meaning there will be no toll booths. Rates announced for the project, which take effect when the bridge opens, are:

• $15.40 per one-way trip as the base toll for drivers without a transponder.
• $7.70 per trip for drivers with an out-of-state toll transponder.
• $3 per trip with an ALGO Pass.
• $60 per month for an unlimited ALGO Pass plan.
• Up to $121.10 per trip for commercial vehicles without a transponder.

State officials have emphasized the discounts available to frequent users, and drivers without a transponder can set up an ALGO Pass account to get the lower rates. Toll rates will rise over time. The Causeway, the tunnels and the existing bridges will remain toll-free.

Beyond tolls, phase one financing includes a $2.52 billion federal TIFIA loan, $675 million in federal grants, at least $250 million from the state and bonds issued through the Alabama Toll Road, Bridge and Tunnel Authority.

Tuberville’s Shifting Focus

Earlier in the week, Tuberville, who is running for governor, told a radio show that the toll plan made him “sick” and pledged to fight the tolls if he is elected. During Friday’s ceremony, however, he did not bring up the issue and instead focused on Trump’s role.

“The best president ever, Donald Trump, he found a way to get it done,” Tuberville said.

Britt said the goal now is making sure the project benefits coastal Alabama.

“People have invested their taxpayer dollars up to D.C. and we are bringing them home to create this opportunity,” she said. “I think we will all work together to make this happen for the benefit of the communities of Baldwin and Mobile and for the citizens of Alabama.”

A Nod to the Builders

Tuberville did recognize the project’s design-build team, Kiewit Massman Traylor, a joint venture of Kiewit, Massman Construction Co. and Traylor Bros. Inc. He singled out Doug Glaser, executive vice president of Omaha-based Kiewit, and recalled a well-known college football game that connects them. Glaser played offensive line for Nebraska in the late 1980s, while Tuberville was an assistant on Jimmy Johnson’s Miami Hurricanes staff that beat Nebraska in the 1988 Orange Bowl.

“We’re going to be good friends,” Tuberville said, noting that his administration would oversee the project if he wins the governor’s race on Nov. 3.

“I’ll be on you for five years,” Tuberville said of Glaser. “We got to get it done on time and under costs by all means.”

What Happens Next

Construction is expected to take about five years, with the first phase projected for completion in late 2031. Tolls will not be charged until the new bridge opens, so drivers will see no toll charges during construction.

The naming question remains open. No formal naming decision was announced Friday, and officials who addressed the topic afterward described it as a conversation that is still taking shape.

The toll plan, meanwhile, is likely to remain part of the political conversation. With the lieutenant governor’s race and the governor’s race on the Nov. 3 ballot, candidates’ positions on the project and its financing may continue to draw attention from voters in Mobile and Baldwin counties.