Stimulus-funded road projects to be put out to bid

By Ariel Hart

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Finally, the federal stimulus may give Georgia drivers a little more congestion relief.

New roads and lanes will become a bigger part of Georgia’s stimulus projects as the state moves into the second half of the program, state Department of Transportation staff told the DOT board at its monthly meeting Thursday. Up to now, it’s been largely repavings and repairs, because those were faster to get “shovel-ready,” a key stimulus requirement.

The stimulus-funded projects to be put out to bid this month include Ga. 74 in Fayette County, a project from Ga. 85 to Cooper Circle to add an additional lane each way. “You’ll see more and more of them come,” said Gerald Ross, DOT’s chief engineer, hopefully adding up to just over a third of the state’s stimulus projects.

Of the estimated $155.6 million in projects that DOT is putting out to bid this month, about $95.7 million are to be paid for by the stimulus, according to a report by Genetha Rice-Singleton, DOT’s assistant director of preconstruction.

In addition, DOT is throwing its hat in the ring for four major road widenings or extensions, in a nationwide contest to win part of $1.5 billion in extra stimulus grants. No state will win more than $300 million, and many may not win anything.

Georgia DOT’s applications likely will include:

● Separate lanes for sorting traffic along eastern I-20 from the Perimeter to Panola Road: $70 million.

● Managed lanes – could be HOV or tolled – in the median along I-75 in Henry County: $80 million.

● An extension of Jimmy DeLoach Parkway at the Savannah port (or this could be a public-private project): possibly $121 million.

● The last phase of extending Truman Parkway in Chatham County: $100 million.

Other Georgia groups are applying, too. The city of Atlanta intends to apply for $300 million to build the Peachtree Streetcar.

Commuter rail advocates on the board voiced alarm that the state DOT wasn’t asking for any of the grant money for its mass transit. After argument from board members Dana Lemon and Emory McClinton, Ross said he would add the languishing commuter rail line project from Atlanta to Griffin and Macon to the list. The stimulus grants are especially desirable because they require no matching local funds.

Ross said he had doubts about how quickly it could be constructed compared with the road projects. Washington hopes to award the grants to projects that can be built by 2012, said Rodney Barry, the division administrator for the Federal Highway Administration in Georgia.

“There’s no legitimate reason why we shouldn’t at least put it on the list,” Lemon said. “If we don’t at least consider the opportunities, then we of course will never get there.”