WASHINGTON – We’ve seen the pictures. The posts on social media.
In fact, there is a good chance that just about everyone who has driven or rode on I-65 in Alabama has been involved in traffic gridlock.
Among state elected officials, Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth has been perhaps the most high-profile advocate for widening the highway.
“Among the top infrastructure needs in Alabama is three-laning I-65 from the Tennessee line to Mobile,” he posted on social media. “Far too often, I-65 is essentially one long parking lot. It frustrates drivers, hurts commerce, and fails to serve the needs of taxpayers. It should have been done decades ago.”
Now, U.S. Sen. Katie Britt has picked up the gauntlet.
At a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development hearing Thursday, Britt (R-Montgomery) questioned Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy on a number of Alabama priorities, including the widening of I-65.
Britt underscored the importance of widening the remaining 277 miles of I-65 that run through Alabama.
“When we’re talking about big, beautiful transportation projects that you mentioned, President Trump has made it a priority, he has said publicly that he wants to see I-65 widened,” she said. “He wants to see it to be a (three) lane road there on each side. He said he was committed to making that happen.”
President Trump has previously discussed a commitment to widening I-65 to six lanes.
Britt has not only continued to advocate to Trump’s Cabinet for Alabama priorities, but, as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, she also secured critical funding for transportation infrastructure across the state.
“Look, we know how important that is for our state. Anyone who wants to travel in Alabama gets stuck on I-65,” she said. “However, all of these great people who, during the spring and summer want to come to Alabama’s beautiful, white sand Gulf Coast or, maybe even the Florida Panhandle, come right down 65.
“(I) would just like your commitment to continuing to take a look at that. There’s no way that project happens without a partnership with the federal government, and (I) want your commitment to making sure that we take a look at what President Trump has promised, and we figure out how to make that happen.”
Thursday’s hearing was to review Trump’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request for the Department of Transportation.
“I would just say the president’s priorities are also my priority,” Duffy said. “So, yes, I’ll take a look at that.”
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