MOBILE COUNTY, Ala. — Mobile County voters renewed the Pay-As-You-Go Transportation Improvement Program on Tuesday, with 64 percent in favor in unofficial results. It was the 21st time the long-running road and bridge program has gone before voters.
The 2026 program is an $82 million package. The county’s summary of the vote lists 39 projects covering 89.8 miles of roadway and six bridges. The ballot question authorized up to $82 million in Pay-As-You-Go Road, Bridge and Drainage Facilities Bonds, repaid through $8.2 million installments on Dec. 1 of each year from 2030 through 2039, and continued the existing special property tax of up to 6.5 mills that pays for them, according to South AL News’ earlier report on the ballot language.
What the money will build
Projects highlighted by the county include:
- Reconstruction of Dauphin Street from Fulton Street to Broad Street
- Widening of a portion of Azalea Road
- A new bridge over Montlimar Creek
- Replacement of two bridges on Beverly Jefferies Highway over the Escatawpa River
- Intersection improvements
The plan includes at least one project in each of Mobile County’s 11 municipalities, along with some in unincorporated areas. The complete project list, with locations and dollar amounts, is available through the Mobile County Commission’s website, according to the earlier report.
Why work will not start right away
County officials say projects typically take several years to move from voter approval to completion. Each one has to go through surveying, engineering and design, permitting, right-of-way acquisition, utility relocation, bidding and construction before it is finished.
No new tax, county says
County officials say the program does not add a new tax or new debt. The 6.5-mill levy already exists, and Pay-As-You-Go money is collected in advance of each two-year program. County Engineer Kim Sanderson described the structure this way before the vote: “The beauty of the pay-as-you-go program is you just can’t go back and get more pay-as-you-go funding. Once the voters approve 82 million for a program, 82 million is all there is.” A mill is one-tenth of a cent of tax per dollar of a property’s assessed value.
Mobile County’s program was the first of its kind in Alabama. It began in 1977, and voters have approved it 21 times counting this election. Over that time, the county says, the program has completed more than 700 projects covering about 1,600 miles of roadway and more than 40 bridges. They include improvements to Airport Boulevard, Schillinger Road, Cottage Hill Road, Zeigler Boulevard and Tanner Williams Road.
Results are unofficial until certified.
