Politics & Government
No Route For U.S. 441 Widening And Bishop Bypass Exists, GDOT Tells Oconee County Citizen Committee
GDOT now is focusing its data gathering on the existing route, GDOT officials said.
The two Georgia Department of Transportation representatives who attended the first meeting of newly appointed Sounding Board on the U.S. 441 widening project in southern Oconee County had a very clear message.
“There is no alignment set for this project at this time,” Brad Saxon, assistant state program delivery engineer, said near the beginning of the meeting.
When asked for clarification by an audience member, he restated that he meant there is “no route” for the road project from just south of Watkinsville to the Morgan County line, including for a bypass of Bishop.
GDOT now is focusing its data gathering on the existing route, Albert V. Shelby III, state program delivery engineer and Saxon’s superior, said.
Because the state is going forward with the project without federal funding, Shelby said, there is “nothing that drives us to a four lane divided facility any more.”
For more on the story, including a full video of the meeting, go to Oconee County Observations.
Pictured: Brad Saxon, left, and Albert Shelby.