Wednesday, April 10, 2002
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Wednesday, April 10, 2002 |
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County commits to new transportation study
By JOHN
THOMPSON
The future of Fayette's future transportation plans may be unveiled after a $140,000 study is completed. The Fayette County Commission approved transferring the money from the contingency fund last week to assess what direction the county travels in planning transportation needs. The study will be done by Atlanta-based URS, which is the largest design firm in the United States. "A hundred and forty thousand dollars is a lot of money. There's a lot of things to consider. I just don't want to deviate too much from the original plan," said Commissioner Herb Frady. The commissioners also wanted the consulting firm to realize how residents commute. "This is primarily a road transportation plan. People are not going to shop on bike paths," said Commissioner Peter Pfeifer. In its overview of the project, URS officials said Fayette County has 528 miles of roadway, but very few multi-lane highways. "In order to ensure that future needs can be met, corridors to accommodate new travel demands and relieve facilities that will be over capacity must be identified," officials said. But as Commissioner A.G. VanLandingham said, the hard work begins after the study is completed. "If we're not going to seek funding for these projects, than this is a waste of money. We have to look at ways of funding," he said. Commission chairman Greg Dunn agreed. Since Fayette County does not have anywhere near the traffic congestion of counties north of Atlanta, he said the majority of money will be heading to those counties. He said the county will get some help, but will have to figure out a way to pay for the projects. The study should be completed by late this year so the county can present it to the Atlanta Regional Commission in January.
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