Took a ride to south Baldwin yesterday and checked out the status of road work at the current north end of the Foley Beach Express. According to a WKRG report http://www.wkrg.com/alabama/article/another_hurricane_evacuation_route/17752/ from August of last year, work on the $26 million project to extend the four-lane roadway will take 5 to 7 years and initial construction involves two miles. Well after a field check, only 1.5 miles of new road is presently under construction, and this involves building a new carriageway along side Baldwin County 28 S north for one half mile to the east-west Baldwin County 28 and a new roadway northward along Eagle Road to Baldwin County 32.
The new carriageway will carry northbound Foley Beach Express, though we would not be surprised if the facility opens with a two-lane configuration temporarily. A 45-mph speed limit is already posted along the unopened stretch north of the present Foley Beach Expressway east-west alignment. Drivers will be required to make a 90 degree turn between the extension and original roadway once the 1.5-mile extension opens.
Photos from yesterday:
Looking south at Baldwin County 28S from the Foley Beach Expressway. Widening of the rural two-lane road into a four-lane approach is part of the project.
Heading north from the Foley Beach Express, Baldwin County 28 sees construction of the future northbound carriageway of the FBE extension.
Looking north from the Baldwin County 28S intersection with Baldwin County 28, where the Foley Beach Express continues northward over Eagle Road. Note the 45 mph speed limit sign already posted by the asphalt roadway.
Baldwin County 32 east at the north end of Foley Beach Express construction. Construction signs tout “Road Work Next 1.8 miles –>”, which likely entails .3 miles of County Road 28 south of the current Foley Beach Expressway. No work is present north of Baldwin County 32.
