Just about anyone traveling Ga. Highway 85 through Fayetteville has noticed an increase in traffic during the past year or two. Plans to address the current and future flow of traffic came Sept. 21 with the approval by Fayetteville City Council to fund a downtown traffic study.

The main thrust of the project will include a detailed study of traffic on Ga. Highway 54, Ga. Highway 85, Jeff Davis Drive and adjacent streets and intersections within approximately one mile of the Hwy. 54/Hwy. 85 intersection.

“The amount of traffic now and in the future and the proximity of the streets and intersections to each other make it critical to study the downtown area as a whole,” City Engineer Don Easterbrook said in an Aug. 25 memo. “The study is needed for the design of new lane configurations, traffic signal locations, traffic signal timing and other improvements.”

Beyond the immediate downtown area, Easterbrook recommended that the area of Ga. Highway 314 at Banks Road/White Road also be studied.

“Backups are getting worse at the intersection and the recent developments along White Road and Hwy. 314 have increased traffic,” Easterbrook said. “A separate left turn lane on White Road may be needed now. This should be determined prior to construction of the White Road sidewalk that is part of the Connecting Sidewalks project currently under design.”

The council approved a $32,000 bid from traffic engineering consultants Kimley-Horn. The only other proposal came from consultants URS at a cost of $61,950. The study is set to include a detailed assessment of traffic counts, analysis of traffic signal timing and providing recommendations for improvements to roads and signals to relieve traffic congestion.

The council gave approval in August to enter into a study of the Hwy. 54 corridor on the city’s west side. The Hwy. 54/Hospital Corridor Task Force members will include representatives from Fayetteville, Fayette County and area property owners.

“The [Hwy.] 54 corridor, particularly in the vicinity of the hospital continues to experience significant develop pressure,” Morton said Aug. 9. “The continued growth of medical facilities and related uses in that area, a possible site for higher education and other institutional uses, the necessity of sewer for such uses and the current marketing of large tracts of land has brought this area to the planning forefront.”