Mobile Development Thread

[nimsjus]

Ive been traveling I-10 alot recently too and have been visiting friends and family in Bham and Atl alot as well. I have mixed feelings on this issue. I have lived in Mobile my entire life (minus college at AU). I used to complain about the Bayway and Airport just like everyone else in Mobile. Having gone away and come back, I do not think traffic is as bad as most folks down here make it out to be. People here complain about the Bayway and Airport Blvd, but I spent 45 minutes on Hwy 280 in Bham to go about 7 miles at noon on Wednesday with no wrecks complicating things. I have never spent 45 minutes traveling 8 mile of the Bayway even during rushhour, much less at off hours. ATL is even worse so I think we blow things out of proportion here when it comes to traffic. The Bayway and Airport for that matter move at a pretty good clip most of the time. They never come to a standstill with normal traffic. The only thing that brings either roadway to a stand still is a wreck. Well a wreck is going to bring any road (big, small, busy, not busy, etc) to a stop and back up traffic so I dont think that is something that should be used to justify widening a road. We cant afford to make every road big enough that if soem of its lanes are blocked it can still handle 100% of its usual daily volume. That would be insanely expensive. However, I have said in the past, the only way I would support a ne Mobile River bridge would be if they widen the Bayway as well. I definitely don't see any need for 2 more lanes over the rive if it is all going to be funeled back into 2 lanes each direction on the Bayway. I might support a bridge if part of the plan involved making I-10 4 lanes in each direction from Theodore to at least Loxley if not the Florida line. I just dont think we are as bad traffic wise as most people suggest, especially having been in some places with legitimate traffic issues.