Ala. Code § 11-3-15
The county commissions of the several counties of the State of Alabama are vested with the following authority in connection with and in addition to any authority, general or special, heretofore vested in them by law. For and on behalf of the respective county which it represents, the county commission may contract for and take over, by lease or otherwise, the operation of bridges over navigable or other streams and may maintain the same as public highways and may expend county funds in the pursuance of such contracts, whether for the purpose of such leases or for the payment of the cost of maintenance or for liability accruing to such county or to the owners or lessors of such bridges on account of accidents or injuries that may arise from such operations.
Ala. Code § 11-3-15 (1975)