Canal Road Cut-Off Plan Could Reshape Beach Traffic For Good
Officials believe the bypass will ease congestion by moving traffic on 2 lanes from Canal Road to Orange Beach Blvd.
Orange Beach, Ala. – (OBA) – Imagine, if you will, exiting I-10 at Buc-ee’s, either heading to a beach vacation or back home if you live here, with two dedicated lanes traveling all the way south to the beach. That may sound like a fantasy, but less than half a mile of asphalt roadway may stand between that traffic reality for vacationers and residents.
“This is the bypass,” Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon said. “The urban myth. The first time I talked about this was in 2017.”
One of several topics covered by Kennon at the city’s May 6 town hall included a spur of a road to take two lanes south from Canal Road near Big Mike’s Steakhouse to a meeting with State Route 161. From there, the stream of traffic will continue to flow with two lanes of traffic heading south to the State Route 182 or beach road.
“It is paid for,” Kennon told the standing-room-only crowd on May 6. “It was part of a negotiated contract with the state when the toll booth went away; we were a signatory on that contract. Our demand was that we wanted the bypass moved to the top of the list and paid for, and I think they gave us $3 million cash.”
Wait, there’s more. As in two northbound lanes as well. Plans today call for a two-way four-lane roadway s with two lanes heading west and eventually north. All the way to Buc-ee’s.
“That’s correct,” City Administrator Ford Handley said. “Two lanes north and south from the beach to Buc-ee’s.”
The holdup today is approval from the Army Corps of Engineers due to wetlands along the route of the bypass. Kennon hopes a D.C. visit helped get this approval moving.
“Myself and Robert Craft went to Washington and met with Coach Tuberville, and Coach Tuberville called in the President’s (Trump’s) new commandant of the Corps of Engineers and really gave him a good talking to, so they sped things up,” Kennon said at the town hall meeting. “It is now leaving ALDOT, moving back to the Corps for final approval. They have to go through all the wetland studies and all the issues, but we can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Kennon said he envisioned the part of Canal Road from Big Mike’s east becoming more for local traffic.
“Everything north on 161 that goes to Doc’s becomes more local traffic,” Kennon said. “Everything from Canal Road at the intersection at Mike’s on the old Canal Road all the way to the roundabout, hopefully will be more local traffic. We will be able to reduce the speed limit so that golf carts can travel there.”
The new pattern could also play a role in the development of city-owned property on both sides of Canal Road near Waterfront Park, Kennon said. See related story: Planning commission to review major projects across Orange Beach
All these properties we purchased on the north and south sides; hopefully will become something for public use. We’ve got our ideas, but we hope to vet them with the public to figure out what we can do with them and what we’d like to do with them.
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