Dirt Turns and Ground Breaks Officially on State Route 92

Submitted by City of Douglasville

The City of Douglasville will host an official ground breaking ceremony Friday August 29, 2014, at 10:30am, for the long anticipated start of construction on the State Route (SR) 92 Relocation Project.

Attendees will be on hand to officially “turn the dirt” commencing the start of the construction phase on this long awaited Regional Road Project. The invitees include State delegates, Congressman David Scott, Georgia Department of transportation (GDOT) officials, Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) Executive staff, and both City and County officials.

The relocated route will be a six-lane highway corridor serving as a north-south connector in Douglasville/Douglas County.

This event captures the magnitude of work signified by this major transportation project that has impact for the entire Region. Reaching back into the late 1970’s, the first initial plans for a new SR 92 began to take form as local City officials had foresight to identify the necessity of expanding this major transportation artery within this growing community. Despite hurdles and roadblocks along the nearly four decade process, The City of Douglasville has continued to forge the road project forward. Congressman David Scott gave new life to the project several years ago by leading the charge and working with his Senate and Congressional colleagues in Washington to help the local City government and GDOT to secure the appropriated Federal funds of $93 million dollars needed to complete the project.

“It has required a great team both in Washington and here locally to secure the Federal funding needed for a project like this. Nowhere in the Nation, in this economy, is there a community of this size, per capita, receiving this amount of funding for multiple transportation projects”, said Congressman Scott in a recent interview with Mayor Persons. Congressman Scott’s efforts in Washington have yielded $93 million in appropriated funds toward this $111 million dollar project.

The relocated portion of SR 92 will consist of 3.1 miles, six lanes with excel-decel lanes, and state of the art technology at key major intersections. To enhance esthetics and promote safety the area will be well-lighted and landscaped. But by far, the most unique feature is the underpass which will run beneath the Norfolk Southern railroad tracks US Highway 78 and Strickland Street. The underpass will provide a seamless connectivity for daily and emergency commutes.

Mayor Persons attributes the on-going success of this huge transportation project to the collective efforts of the group and the collaboration of many different agencies working to keep the project moving forward. “Holding groundbreaking ceremonies to signal the start of construction on the relocation of State Route 92 through the City of Douglasville truly is a historic occasion. When construction is completed in 2018, Douglasville will have in operation a greatly needed and long‑awaited six‑lane highway running North‑South through our City which will include this community’s first grade separation railroad crossing,” stated Mayor Persons. “My special appreciation is extended to Congressman David Scott for his support in Washington of this very important regional transportation project. Locally, we have worked closely with Governor Deal and officials in the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) to allow the successful completion of the extensive planning and funding process, which will allow this road project to move into the construction phase.”

“This groundbreaking will be witnessed by many citizens on August 29th and will be the beginning for this 3.1 mile highway project that will continue in helping make Douglasville be one of the Premier places in American to live, work play and raise a family,” concluded Mayor Persons.

The ground breaking ceremony will take place at the northern end of the SR 92 Relocation project, at Jesse Davis Park which is located at the intersection of Brown and Malone Streets just off SR 92. The event agenda includes remarks from key delegates, city officials, and the GDOT project team. The public is invited to the ceremonial event from 10:30-11:30am.

The $111 million SR 92 Relocation project will provide traffic congestion relief and travel convenience to local and out-of-town motorists, as well as provide improved connectivity with neighboring counties. Construction is expected to be complete in 2018.