A revived Georgia Department of Transportation (DOT) program for safety improvements on county roads has Greene County’s Board of Commissioners and Public Works department planning for significant improvements. With DOT poised to pay for at least $350,000 in safety improvements in Greene County alone, local residents stand to benefit from miles of new centerline and edge striping and newer, brighter signage.
The county’s Public Works department will be taking stock of the county’s most pressing safety improvement needs in the next month—evaluating railroad crossings that could use an update, intersections and speed zones that need new signage, and roads with faded yellow and white lines. The list of projects isn’t due to the state DOT office until January 1, 2010, but given that $350,000 can pay for a lot of safety improvements, county officials will be working hard to get the list together.
“This program will make a real difference and allow Greene County to complete hundreds of safety improvements,” said County Manager Byron Lombard. “We just appreciate the state’s willingness to help out counties, because we always have more projects than dollars to pay for them.”
Once the list is settled on, contracts between the state and Greene County will be drawn up in the spring, with the advertising and bid packages process taking place in early summer. After the contractor is selected, local citizens should see work start by July 1, 2010. Given the size of the contract and number of projects, work should be completed within 12 to 18 months.
One of the biggest cost-saving benefits of this program is that the state DOT will allow Greene County to keep old signs and sign posts—a measure that will make a big difference in routine maintenance costs over the coming years.
“This program will help us out in a number of ways,” Lombard said. “It allows us to catch up on safety projects, for sure, but it also puts us in a good position as we move forward.”
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