Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez took a pit stop in Atlanta on Tuesday to congratulate the Georgia Department of Transportation on its ahead-of-schedule completion of paving on I-75.
The highway project, which was completed three months ahead of schedule and uses federal stimulus dollars, included resurfacing parts of the busy highway from the Brookwood split to I-285.
Mendez, along with GDOT representatives, spoke with reporters Tuesday on the 17th Street bridge overlooking I-75 in Midtown Atlanta.
"This is the kind of project I'd like to visit every day -- smart use of our Recovery Act funds, done with no disruption to weekday traffic and finished well ahead of schedule," Mendez said.
The 8.86-mile project used $17 million in federal aid funds, $14 million of which came directly from stimulus money authorized by the government. It is the last Recovery Act project authorized in Georgia.
"Instead of sitting in work-zone traffic during these hot summer months, Atlanta drivers on this major commuter route are enjoying an upgraded highway," Mendez said.
State Transportation Board Chairman Rudy Bowen said he was pleased to see the stimulus funds put toward a project that made life easier for some Georgia commuters. He said he was happy to see federal and state level officials working together to make the project go over smoother and faster than anticipated.
Mendez also spoke to The Atlanta-Journal Constitution about mounting budget pressures in Washington, and a newly proposed six-year, $230 billion highway bill.
The bill, unveiled last week by Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), is several hundred billion dollars below President Obama's $556 billion transportation funding proposal. If passed, Mica's bill would ax funding for future projects across the country now that stimulus funds have dried up in many states.
"That discussion, Congress and the administration are going to have to come together and figure out," Mendez said.
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