New North-South Route Planned Between Foley And Gulf Shores
City, county, and Gulf Shores work together on a new route linking Highway 98 to County Road 8 to improve local traffic options.
Foley, Ala. — (OBA) — Foley leaders are moving forward with a plan to build a new north-south road connecting Foley and Gulf Shores, providing drivers with an alternative to avoid heavy traffic on Highway 59 and the Beach Express. City officials say the route will follow the James Road corridor and is being designed to minimize impacts on nearby homes, wetlands, and trees. The project is a collaborative effort between the city of Foley, Baldwin County, and the city of Gulf Shores. Local leaders believe the new road will enhance connectivity across the area and offer residents more travel options to and from the beach.
The Foley City Council has approved a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wetland delineation proposal, which is necessary to continue developing plans to extend James Road south from Brinks Willis Road to Gulf Shores. The extension will start at Brinks Willis Road, cross Keller Road, and connect to a new road planned near the Rocky Road Loop in Gulf Shores. This project is part of a long-term regional effort to improve traffic flow in southern Baldwin County.
Foley Mayor Ralph Hellmich said the city is working closely with Baldwin County and Gulf Shores on the route to ensure it fits as smoothly as possible into the surrounding area. “Gulf Shores did a mile. The county's doing a mile, we're doing a mile roughly,” Hellmich said. “We're working very closely with the county and Gulf Shores to align it the best we can, to impact as little as possible on either wetlands or people's properties.”
Hellmich said the route is also being adjusted to protect trees and other natural features along the way. “We moved it over one time to save a row of oak trees,” he said. “So we're doing everything we can to make it the least intrusive that we can.”
Once completed, the new road is expected to provide a continuous route from Highway 98 in Foley to Gateway Road (County Road 8) near Gulf Shores. “When this is done, this will create connectivity all the way from Highway 98 down to the Gateway Road, County Road 8,” Hellmich said.
City officials are also evaluating how the James Road corridor could eventually connect to roads north of Foley. Hellmich said the long-range plan includes opening North Pecan so drivers can reach Gateway and then continue to the Baldwin Beach Express via connected local roads. “Ultimately, when we're able to open up North Pecan, then you'll be able to get on to Gateway and go all the way to the Baldwin Beach Express,” he said.
Hellmich stressed that the new corridor will not be an expressway or a high-speed route, but it will still provide drivers with another option. “Now it's not going to be an expressway. It's not even going to be a high-speed road,” he said. “It'd be a lot of stop signs and red lights, but it is another connectivity effort that we're doing with the county and with local people to give our people an alternative and a way to stay off 59 and the Beach Express.”
The James Road extension is part of the Baldwin County Commission’s “30-Cubed” program, which allocates 30 million dollars for joint projects with cities and towns in the county by 2030. Municipalities participating in the program are expected to match the county’s contribution for their projects, effectively doubling the total investment in local roadwork and other improvements.
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