State transportation officials have sped up the timeline for widening the southern leg of Ga. Highway 74 in Peachtree City, which will create four traffic lanes from the driveway leading to Cooper Lighting south to Ga. Highway 85.

The project will begin in 2007 instead of 2009, State Sen. Ronnie Chance said Tuesday afternoon.

Commuters in Senoia will particularly benefit because the Georgia Department of Transportation has agreed to realign Rockaway Road as part of the project. The new road would line up with an existing traffic light at Holly Grove Road.

Currently, Rockaway gets bogged down during weekday commuting time, and sight distances in the area make crossing onto Hwy. 74 difficult at times.

Rockaway currently dead-ends at a stop sign onto Hwy. 74 right in front of the Fayette County Animal Shelter. The realignment would move the intersection about 1,500 feet farther into Peachtree City.

The move would benefit Peachtree City residents, who wouldn’t have to pay the estimated $576,000 for design and construction of the road, said Mayor Steve Brown. It will also help those who use the city’s Meade softball fields which are located adjacent to Rockaway Road.

The City Council is expected to discuss the matter at its council meeting Thursday night.

If the city were to continue with the project, it could be done one year sooner than the DOT, according to an analysis written by city staff. Since 1990, 16 of 104 accidents at the intersection involved injuries.

Chance, who grew up nearby off Bernhard Road in south Fayette County, said the project will benefit the entire region specifically because it will help commuters going to and from Peachtree City’s industrial plants on Hwy. 74.

“We’re very pleased,” Chance said.

Chance said Rep. Billy Horne, who represents Senoia, helped speed up the project along with efforts from U.S. Congressman Lynn Westmoreland. State Sen. Mitch Seabaugh, who used to represent Peachtree City until his district was changed, also played a role in laying the groundwork for the project, Chance noted.

The DOT also plans to widen Hwy. 74 to four lanes stretching from Ga. Highway 54 to Cooper Lighting, officials said. That is scheduled to be the first phase of the project and will be let out for bids in April 2006, but a delay may occur due to the location of wetlands near the project.

That leg is seen as important to help improve traffic for trucks from industries like Cooper Lighting and Panasonic, two of the county’s largest employers, because they depend on being able to reach Interstate 85 in a reasonable amount of time, officials have said.

State Rep. Dan Lakly, R-Peachtree City, said Tuesday morning that he hadn’t heard the second phase of the Hwy. 74 widening had been sped up.

“That’s a good thing,” Lakly said, noting that although he doesn’t get many complaints about Hwy. 74 traffic, he knows it can get congested with traffic at times due to commuters to and from the city’s industrial park.

Lakly added that many folks in Peachtree City are probably more concerned about when the widening of Ga. Highway 54 West to four lanes will be finished. Construction is ongoing in the area and is due to wrap up next summer.

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