BOC approves application for federal transportation funding

Atlanta Regional Commission logo
Atlanta Regional Commission logo

The Henry County commissioners approved the county’s selection of projects at today’s meeting to be submitted to the Atlanta Regional Commission for consideration to receive federal transportation funding. The projects, comprised of roadway widening projects and roadway resurfacing, will be competitively evaluated against other submissions from across the metropolitan Atlanta region.

ARC holds the project solicitation on a biannual basis to receive applications from local governments. In 2015 and 2017, Henry County received funding for two projects: highway 81 widening, now referred to as phase I, and Rock Quarry Road widening. The county received preliminary engineering funding for the projects in 2015 followed by right of way acquisition funding in 2017.

Federal transportation funding covers eighty percent of phase costs. The remaining twenty percent is required to be covered in a local match, most commonly through the SPLOST program. If all submitted projects were awarded to Henry County, the local match would be equivalent to $17,130,000.

ProjectPhaseVoteSubmitted
Highway 81 Widening (Phase I)*
Postmaster Drive to Bethany Rd
CST6-0Yes
Jodeco Road Widening**
I-75 to Flippen Road
PE / ROW6-0Yes
Rock Quarry Road Extension**
SR 138 to East Atlanta Rd
PE6-0Yes
Rock Quarry Road Widening*
Eagle’s Landing Parkway to SR 138
CST6-0Yes
Highway 81 Widening (Phase II)*
Bethany Road to Keys Ferry
PE6-0Yes
Jonesboro Road Resurfacing
Mt Olive Road to Clayton County
CST6-0Yes
Bill Gardner Pkwy Widening**
I-75 to SR 155
PE6-0Yes
East Atlanta Road Resurfacing
Old Conyers Road to Rex Road
CST6-0Yes
Flippen Road Widening
SR 42 / 138 to Jonesboro Rd
PE6-0Yes
Hampton-Locust Grove Road Resurfacing
SR 20 to SR 155
CST6-0Yes
I-75 Interchange at Bethlehem RoadSCP3-3No
McDonough Parkway*
SR 42 to SR 155
CST6-0Yes

Key: SCP – Scoping, PE – Preliminary Engineering, ROW – Right of Way Acquisition, and CST – Construction.

Items marked with one asterisk* are included within the upcoming SPLOST V program. Items marked with two asterisks** were included in the 2017 project solicitation, but did not receive federal funding.

The projects were considered without commissioners offering any comment or questions about the projects. All projects passed on unanimous votes, except for the I-75 interchange at Bethlehem Road. Commissioners voted along party lines, Chair Wood, Commissioners Wilson, and Barham in support, and Commissioners Clemmons, Thomas, and Holmes opposed, to prevent the project’s submittal.

Henry County staff will now submit the project applications to ARC before next Friday’s deadline. ARC staff are expected to complete their evaluation and provide their funding recommendations by the second quarter in 2020.

About Clayton 1738 Articles
Clayton Carte is the founder and owner of The Henry Reporter. He founded the site in 2017 to highlight transportation projects. Over time, he began covering other topics like new development so residents can best know what’s happening in our community.

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