Mounting traffic congestion is a daily and increasing reality in Fayette County. A move to lessen traffic impact is the purpose of the Fayetteville Bypass, with construction on the first of three phases of the West Bypass expected to begin in the spring and construction of the East Bypass tentatively set to begin in late 2011.

But some property owners affected by the upcoming West Bypass are far from happy over the way the project has unfolded.

Fayette County engineer Phil Mallon said Monday the West Bypass has three phases. Phase 1 begins in the Huiet Road/Lester Road area and proceeds north across Ga. Highway 54 and ties into Sandy Creek Road.

Phase 2 will extend from Sandy Creek Road to Ga. Highway 92 in the area of Westbridge Road. Funding for both phases come from $50 million in local funds.

Phase 3 of the project will begin in the Huiet Road/Lester Road area and extend south to Redwine Road. Phase 3 is a long-range project, Mallon said, requiring state and federal funds to complete.

But Phases 1 and 2 will begin much sooner since local funds are being used. The county is currently in the right-of-way acquisition phase for Phase 1, with a possible construction start date this spring and a completion date 12-18 months later, though Mallon said those dates were probably optimistic.

Also optimistic are the dates for Phase 2, with construction anticipated beginning in May 2009 and project completion two years later.

Sandy Creek Road residents Joe and Marilyn Durden are in the path of the Phase 1 portion of the project. In a Feb. 1 letter to Fayette County commissioners, the Durdens said they were requesting a one-year delay of all construction plans until the county can research all possible alternatives.

They said the bypass will have an adverse impact on the area, adding that it will eventually become littered with businesses, noise and more crime and a resulting diminished quality of life.

“From the beginning of our involvement in this project, we have been lied to by the county and the county has zero creditably with us,” the Durdens said in the Feb. 1 letter. “We had a meeting in December 2007 with Mr. Mallon and our attorney, Doug Warner. During that meeting, Mr. Mallon asked for permission to come onto our property and lay out the engineering markers and we said no. We wanted the county to research an alternative. A few weeks later the markers were placed on our property and we still haven’t seen any alternative plans. We recently received a letter from Mr. Mallon apologizing for this but the markers still remain on our property. Actions speak louder than words. My wife and I feel violated by the county because of this incident. The last time I checked, we have paid all of our real and personal property taxes.”

Responding to Durden’s letter, the Fayette County Board of Commissioners said it understands major transportation projects such as the West Bypass may impact individual property owners, adding that the current alignment is the most appropriate for the segment of the project affecting the Durden property.

“All efforts have been made in the design process to mitigate, as much as possible, the impact of this particular transportation initiative,” the board’s Feb. 5 statment said. “We understand citizens’ concerns whenever projects such as this one impacts one’s individual property and, therefore, will continue to strive to minimize these impacts to the best of our ability, while at the same time making decisions that are in the best interest of the overall community’s current and future transportation needs.”

Plans for the East Bypass are under the auspices of Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and are much further into the future. A Jan. 31 public comment meeting at East Fayette Elementary provided proposed routes for two phases on the city’s east side that will run from Ga. Highway 85 and Corinth Road on the north side, essentially following Corinth south past its intersection with Hwy. 54.

Phase 2 of the project would begin along County Line Road approximately one-half mile of McDonough Road and extend to the intersection of South Jeff Davis Road.

GDOT projections for the actual construction remains years away, though the public comment phase, now in process, is the optimal time for residents to express concerns.

Environmental studies for the East Bypass are currently underway, though the concept plan is not yet approved. Right-of-way acquisition is projected for late 2009, with the beginning of construction in late 2011 and completion sometime in 2015.

Comments to the plan can be made at www.dot.ga.us.