Wednesday, June 18, 2003
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Wednesday, June 18, 2003 |
Local meeting to come on regional transportation planBy JOHN
THOMPSON
Residents who want a better look at the possible future of Fayette's transportation needs should circle July 2 on their calendars. The Atlanta Regional Commission, the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority and other planning agencies are coming to town that day to get residents' opinions on the Mobility 2030 Regional Transportation Plan. This is the latest effort by Atlanta's planners to try and plan for the future transportation needs of the region. ARC planners estimate another 2.3 million people will move into the region by 2030, pushing the area's population toward 7 million. But the latest approach seems to be a little different than past efforts. "We're looking at regional efforts to try and connect the different systems," said John Orr, long range project manager at ARC. The plan focuses on five regional systems; cross-regional thruways, HOV lanes and interchanges, express bus and commuter rail, bicycle and pedestrian and smart corridors. Fayette County could see some traffic relief with the expanding of Ga. Highway 54 to four lanes in the cross regional thruway portion of the program. Hwy. 54 is one of 10 major projects in the region in the 2030 plan that would help add capacity to existing roads. The county would not see any HOV lanes, since there are no interstates running through the county, but could possibly see an express bus by 2030. Maps provided by ARC show two bus routes in the county. Fayette County was one of two counties in the region that rejected express buses proposed by GRTA last year. Orr could not provide a specific list of projects, but ARC maps show a number of bicycle and pedestrian paths planned for the county. The county will probably also see a number of its roads incorporate parts of the Intelligent Transportation Systems. ARC officials said this process involves laying fiber optic cable and having a better coordination of traffic signals. The Mobility 2030 meeting runs from 5:30-7:30 p.m. the first Wednesday in July at the Fayette County Administrative Complex in Fayetteville.
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