The interstate exit in Alabama used to be quiet.
Then, six years ago, a Buc-ee’s Travel Center opened.
The cars have not stopped since.
The giant roadside convenience store brought an economic boom to the small but growing city of Loxley, just a half-hour east of Mobile.
The city’s story could signal what is coming this year on the Mississippi Coast. Leaders in Loxley said the arrival of Buc-ee’s caused two big changes: The traffic became a regular nuisance. But the boost of tourist tax dollars and partnership with the chain helped the city get money for parks and other amenities.
“It’s made a tremendous impact,” said Richard Teal, Loxley’s mayor. “It’s meant everything to our city.”
It is unclear if Buc-ee’s arrival in Harrison County this spring will unfold exactly the same way. The state and county anticipated more traffic and have already expanded the ramps and replaced the bridge at the Menge Avenue exit of Interstate 10, where the store is under construction. The $50 million travel center is also the first in Mississippi. The Loxley location and another coming to Lafayette, Louisiana could temper the flow of visitors that has overwhelmed other stores in recent years.
But Loxley may still hold clues for the Coast’s future.
Buc-ee’s brought economic boost
Loxley annexed Buc-ee’s after it was built. The agreement gave Buc-ee’s a tax break in exchange for $50,000 to help the city cover the costs of adding municipal services. The agreement also gives Loxley $25,000 a year for community programs and development.
The annexation also lets Loxley use taxes from Buc-ee’s to pay for playground equipment, parks and other city amenities, according to Teal. Leaders have noted those taxes are often paid by out-of-state tourists from across the South.
Loxley and the Mississippi Coast have similar tourist appeal. The Coast gets about 13.5 million visitors each year, according to the tourism group Coastal Mississippi. Almost 8.4 million people visited Baldwin County in 2023, according to an Alabama tourism report. Many of them, it appears, stopped at Buc-ee’s.
Related: Mississippi’s first Buc-ee’s comes to life an hour from New Orleans. When will it open?
Buc-ee’s also hired 200 people when it opened, and leaders said those jobs went to locals from Baldwin County. The annexation also meant Buc-ee’s could use Loxley police officers for security, which earns local law enforcement extra money.
“It’s a good company,” said Billie Jo Underwood, a county commissioner whose district includes the land near Buc-ee’s. “They’re very supportive of the area.”
Traffic problems on I-10 arose
The store has also led to a surge in traffic.
The Loxley Buc-ee’s is off the Baldwin Beach Express exit of Interstate 10. The region’s thousands of tourists usually pass through on the way to towns like Fairhope and Orange Beach.
Leaders said the traffic problems are not constant. But the congestion grows worse during holidays and the summer.
So many cars getting on and off at the exit has caused traffic jams that spread onto the interstate, Underwood said. Confusing signs and changing GPS directions have also sent cars through Loxley’s rolling fields and down quiet county roads, where Underwood said some oblivious tourists have used private driveways to turn around.
Related: It’s official: Buc-ee’s purchases 42 acres for a massive travel center in Lafayette
That made some locals fume.
The city adapted. The Alabama Department of Transportation expanded the off ramp to Buc-ee’s in attempt to alleviate backups. It also widened the Baldwin Beach Express. Teal said Buc-ee’s has collaborated well with the city.
“We’ve done as best we can,” Underwood said, to relieve the traffic. But “it’s just not an easy solution,” she added. “It’s been tough.”
Learning from Loxley
Underwood said it is possible Buc-ee’s learned from its troubles with traffic in Baldwin County. She said she did not experience a similar slog at a Buc-ee’s in Athens, Alabama. That store opened more than three years after the one in Loxley.
Buc-ee’s impact in Loxley also appears centered in city limits. Charles Murphy, the mayor of nearby Robertsdale, Alabama, called Buc-ee’s a “cash cow” because of how much merchandise it sells. But he said it has had no large impact on his city.
While there has been little development in the immediate vicinity of Buc-ee’s, other businesses have followed in Loxley and across Baldwin County. These include an ALDI distribution center, an industrial center and an aluminum manufacturing plant that is expected to create 1,000 new jobs.
It is unclear if the new Buc-ee’s in Harrison County will capture any business from Loxley. For Loxley’s sake, Teal hopes it will not.
“I’m not sad that Buc-ee’s came to Baldwin County by any means,” Underwood said. “I just wish we’d been able to see how busy it would be.”
Staff writer Mary Perez contributed reporting.