Coweta and Fulton Counties became the latest jurisdictions to sign off on an agreement to try and better plan growth on the Ga. Highway 74 corridor.

In October, the Coweta County Commission approved the Congestion Relief Accord written by the State Route 74 Alliance. The group is comprised of eight Southside governments as well as the South Fulton Community Improvement District (CID). The accord was proposed by Peachtree City Mayor Steve Brown, and last week Fulton County also approved the Alliance’s accord. Fairburn, Union City, Senoia, the South Fulton CID, and Peachtree City have also all passed the accord, which leaves only Fayette County and Tyrone left to deliberate.

When asked about Fayette County’s absence from the table, Fayette County Commission Chairman Greg Dunn said plenty is already being done to look at the busy road.

“I’m chairman of the ARC’s Transportation Committee and am in the middle of doing a comprehensive plan for six southside counties,” he said.

Dunn added that much of the work the 74 Alliance Group is doing is already in the planning stages through other government agencies.

After the Congestion Relief Accord has been approved and finalized, it will then be presented to Gov. Sonny Perdue, local lawmakers and state transportation officials to explain what transportation projects are considered vital by southside communities near I-85. The accord contains recommendations such as accelerating the rebuilding of the Hwy. 74 interchange on I-85 which is in the ARC's long-range plan. Additionally, the document recommends studies for area interchanges on I-85 and representation from the southside jurisdictions in the ARC's new regional freight study intended to analyze the effects of truck traffic.

The next State Route 74 Alliance meeting will be held December 7 at 11:30 a.m. at the Renaissance at South Park meeting facility on Oakley Industrial Boulevard in Fairburn.

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