Pay-As-You-Go, Mobile County's flagship transportation improvement program, on Nov. 3 ballot
Posted on: Oct 7th, 2026 | AnnouncementsFeatured NewsPress Releases
MOBILE COUNTY, Ala. — For the 21st time, Mobile County’s flagship road and bridge program will be on the ballot when voters consider the 2026 Pay-As-You-Go Transportation Improvement Program in the Nov. 3 General Election.
The proposed 2026 PAYG directs $82 million to 39 projects improving 89.8 miles of roadway and six bridges across Mobile County, with no new taxes and no new debt. PAYG is the last item on the Mobile County ballot, titled “Special County Election.”
Through the 2026 PAYG, voters would dedicate funding to road and bridge projects such as:
- Reconstruction of Dauphin Street from Fulton Street to Broad Street
- Widening a portion of Azalea Road and constructing a new bridge over Montlimar Creek
- Intersection improvements at Celeste Road and Radcliff Road
- Intersection improvements at Fowl River Road and State Route 193 and replacement of the Fowl River Road bridge over Fowl River
- Replacement of two bridges on Beverly Jefferies Highway over the Escatawpa River
There is at least one proposed 2026 PAYG project in each of Mobile County’s 11 municipalities: Bayou La Batre, Chickasaw, Citronelle, Creola, Dauphin Island, Mobile, Mount Vernon, Prichard, Saraland, Satsuma and Semmes. The program also includes projects in unincorporated areas of Mobile County.
Mobile County voters have approved PAYG each of the 20 times it has appeared on the ballot. Since Mobile County’s Pay-As-You-Go Transportation Improvement Program began in 1977, voters have dedicated funding for over 700 projects encompassing nearly 1,600 miles of roadway and more than 40 bridges.
Completed PAYG projects include major improvements to key arteries like Airport Boulevard, Schillinger Road, Cottage Hill Road, Zeigler Boulevard, and Tanner Williams Road; resurfacing portions of Hillcrest Road; constructing roundabouts throughout west and south Mobile County; and replacing bridges, including multiple bridges replaced on Schillinger Road.
Mobile County’s PAYG program was the first of its kind in Alabama. It began in 1977 by directing revenue from a 6.5-mill ad valorem assessment, first approved by voters in 1924, to specifically identified road and bridge projects presented to voters for approval. PAYG funds are collected in advance of each two-year transportation improvement program, allowing the County to fund road and bridge improvements without new taxes or new debt.
PAYG projects typically take several years from voter approval to completion because of required intermediate steps, including surveying, engineering and design, permitting, right-of-way acquisition, utility relocation, bidding, and construction. Projects requiring extensive permitting or right-of-way acquisition can take longer, particularly when state or federal matching funds bring additional requirements.
View Mobile County’s sample ballot for the Nov. 3 General Election at https://probate.mobilecountyal.gov/uploads/Mobile-SampleBallot.pdf.
The 2026 proposed program and all Pay-As-You-Go program engineering reports are available at https://www.mobilecountyal.gov/government/departments/pay-as-you-go/.
