09/16/2026
If you live in Gulf Shores or Foley, you already know there are two kinds of Highway 59.
Highway 59 on a quiet winter morning.
And Highway 59 when everybody in three states decides to go to the beach at the same time.
Now another traffic improvement is getting underway.
The City of Gulf Shores announced in September that an ALDOT project will add a third southbound lane on Highway 59 from Cypress Bend Drive to just south of County Road 6, also known as Oak Road West.
The project has been awarded to Wiregrass Construction for approximately $1.67 million, with construction expected to begin this month.
That stretch matters because Highway 59 isn't simply a tourist road anymore.
Thousands of local residents use it for work, school, shopping and everyday life.
Then spring break arrives.
Summer arrives.
A festival weekend arrives.
And suddenly everybody is trying to move through the same corridor.
The city says the additional lane is intended to improve traffic flow during peak travel periods, reduce delays for daily commuters and improve safety.
It's another reminder of how different Gulf Shores has become.
The city's 2026 budget history describes an original town of only 206 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway. Today Gulf Shores has roughly 17,000 permanent residents, and that number can swell dramatically with visitors.
Longtime locals remember when Highway 59 looked nothing like it does now.
And apparently we're not finished changing it yet.
Will one more lane solve beach traffic forever?
Probably not.
But anybody who has sat through Saturday turnover traffic will happily take every extra lane we can get.
