Transportation Investment Act
Your Penny, Your Progress

It's often exciting when a large corporation or government agency relocates to a new community. After the enthusiasm calms down, local officials have to figure out how to accommodate the changes that come with a sudden influx of residents, and that includes infrastructure adjustments to handle increased residential and business traffic.

In this video series, we're taking a look at projects that are underway in TIA regions, why they were selected for program inclusion and how they're expected to resolve issues in their communities. Click here to discover how improvements to Columbia County's SR 388 corridor at Interstate 20 are expected to affect traffic flow in an area experiencing a wave of growth.

Dublin officials are working through a citywide neighborhood revitalization program, and for the Stubbs Park neighborhood those plans include changes to traffic patterns. In this video series, we're taking a look at how completed TIA projects are benefitting their communities. Click here to see how improving traffic flow and developing a repurposed neighborhood space is upgrading a community and enriching the city.

Last weekend, May 10 - 12, 2024, multiple construction crews cooperated to demolish the remaining Buena Vista Road overpass bridge at Interstate 185. There are many ways to take down a concrete structure, and project engineers ultimately decided the most effective operation would involve: 1) working in overnight shifts, when there's less traffic; 2) removing half of the bridge at a time, the west end on the first night and the east end on the second; 3) closing the interstate lanes through the area and redirecting traffic to use the on- and off-ramps to get around the activity; and 4) using huge hydraulic jackhammer vehicles to quickly break up the concrete and rebar. 

With various coordinated teams participating, the overnight driving public remaining in the vicinity and tons of rubble to be created and then removed, keeping everyone and everything in the area safe and secure was the ultimate goal. Yes, working quickly and making sure that resources were being used carefully were also important, but time and costs can be managed if necessary. Peoples' lives and livelihoods must always be protected and preserved, as unaffected as possible by the construction.

The photos and details shown below are from the first night of the demolition, but the process remained the same for both nights. 

On Friday, May 10, the first safety step of the night involved enacting the traffic control plan. The Columbus Consolidated Government and Georgia DOT both made announcements through broadcast and social media in the weeks prior to the construction event, alerting local and regional residents to the interstate lane closures. The project's contractors set up message boards in advance of the construction site as an additional notice.  

At 9:00 p.m., a crew started by setting out orange-and-white barrels to direct through-traffic to the on- and off-ramps, while officers with the Muscogee County Sheriff's Department and Columbus Police Department gradually blocked the interstate lanes and then monitored traffic through the area throughout the process. At times they also temporarily closed traffic to the newly-completed overpass, and a couple of times had to deal with a motorist who wasn't paying attention and managed to get around the barriers. All in all, however, the vast majority of drivers patiently and safely passed alongside the demolition.

In addition to protecting people and their vehicles, the construction plan also ensured that the roadway underneath the bridge remained undamaged and able to be reopened to traffic at dawn. Part of the evening's prep work involved a two-worker team: one in a backhoe with a forklift who set loads of large wooden beams underneath the overpass, and another in a Bobcat with a grapple attachment who then lined up all the beams evenly. Huge chunks of concrete could then fall on the shock-absorbing beams and keep the road safe.

One of the largest construction vehicles of the night was equipped with what's called a 'shear,' a huge, sharp claw that can cut through metal like scissors cut through paper.  The demolition shear was called in for two important safety tasks: 1) to take down the remaining metal features from the overpass, like the pedestrian safety fence, and 2) to cut down nearby power lines. Utility crews had already moved the power from the nearby lines to a new cables located away from the interchange, and with a few huge snips, the old lines were out of the way. 

Finally the prep work was complete and team members in the giant jackhammer vehicles could start the actual bridge demolition. Operating in tandem, they jabbed in  patterns through the concrete and rebar, and the old overpass fell in pieces down on top of the waiting wooden beams. With full safety measures in place, the jackhammers could operate fairly quickly leaving the steel beams to be then handled by the demolition shear and crew members who removed the metal pieces. 

When the west end of the bridge was finally completely downed, the teams cooperated to ensure every bit of metal and rubble - as well as the wooden beams - were taken away in time for the interstate's morning commuters. The traffic control measures were lifted at 6:00 a.m., and drivers likely only fleetingly realized as they were on their ways to work, school or home that half of the old overpass was suddenly gone. It's that way with safety plans, though: when you take all necessary steps and do them correctly, most people won't notice anything at all. 

Lowndes County and City of Valdosta leaders are improving infrastructure as part of their goal to become a prime South Central Georgia hub. In this video series, we're taking a look at how completed TIA projects are benefitting their communities. Click here to discover how improving a county highway is one way to engage future residents.

Now that the roadsides for this widening and improvements project have been largely cleared, the first task at hand is to move all utility lines that follow the edges of the current roadway. This includes telecommunication wires and cables, water and sewer pipes, and often power lines. This past week, a focus was on water lines with several crews located at various points along the construction corridor. The project's prime contractor, Robinson Paving of Columbus, brought in Gordy Construction Company of Columbus to lay out a new pipeline, then switch the water and sewer to the new system and remove the old pipes. 

If you drove on Veterans Parkway through the construction zone this past week, you probably had to drive around large vehicles and equipment with crew members working both above and below ground. This activity below was at the Wooldridge Road intersection.

The land from the project's south to north end has been cleared to various widths from 20-feet to 50-feet on the roadsides depending on the future work needed in each area and with a concerted effort to cause as little impact to local property owners.  Here, further north near the Lake Kokoloe area, a 40-foot wide swath has been emptied and is now being prepped for new pipe. Excavator operators continue moving earth as part of that adjustment.

When the new pipeline is installed and the old one taken out, Robinson Paving will then mobilize crews to work on the project's drainage plan. In the meantime, power and telecommunication teams will also be on the scene, doing their part to ensure that when construction crews finally start working on the actual roadway, the corridor will be completely equipped for decades of local residents' future utility use and maintenance.

As always, because so much of the current operations involve large construction vehicles and equipment along current roadsides, it's important that all drivers proceed at a moderate rate of speed through the project's work zones and stay alert to teams and individuals - including signal flaggers who may pop up when temporary lane closures occur. Give yourself extra time on your commute as well as when you know you'll need to travel through the area and practice patience. Every construction worker has a family and friends who want them to head to work and home safe and sound, just like you and me.

The City of Claxton in Evans County focused on street resurfacing when putting projects on the Heart of Georgia Altamaha Region's investment list. In our new short video series, we're taking a look at how completed TIA projects are benefitting their communities. Click here to hear how Claxton's multiple street resurfacing projects have primed the city for unexpected prospects.

 

As we complete our celebrations of TIA's first 10 years, from 2013 to 2022, we're releasing our second video featuring local leaders from all four of our participating regions as well as the Georgia DOT. Each region's projects were selected to contribute to increasing their civic and economic development. Let's take a look at how these infrastructure improvements helped each region progress. Click here to watch the video.

Earlier this month, contractors closed Buck Creek Bypass to traffic to proceed with major construction on this widening and improvements project. After a week of milling the old roadway, the asphalt crew started laying down the thick layer of new pavement. All construction workers rely on strong teamwork to accomplish their tasks, and an asphalt crew is a particularly good example of why it's important and how it works.

Asphalt work can be dangerous as the vehicles involved are large, the paving material is heavy and hot, and there are many points in the process where inattention can easily result in injury or worse. Safety is the number one priority, with efficiency a very close second as each day of paving results in costs of tens-to-hundreds of thousands of dollars. With such high stakes, asphalt crews themselves tend to be large, with some members ensuring progress and quality control while others act as spotters, watching for any sign of trouble. These workers are often in precarious positions with the vehicles and equipment, and having eyes watching from various vantage points keep everyone safe and the project moving.

As you can imagine, all these large vehicles make a lot of noise. Team members often have to utilize hand signals to communicate - which means that everyone must always be alert to others gesturing at them to go, stop, lift, check, and many other commands. Up ahead are a line of dump trucks filled with asphalt, and drivers wait patiently for their own signals. When the truck in action is empty, it quickly pulls out of the way so another can safely back up into place and keep the process going. Dump trucks rotate in and out of the equipment line-up several times each day so that the asphalt crew stops as little as possible. 

Behind the vehicles and crews laying the new, thick, hot asphalt is a the roller operator. While the process slowly moves forward, the roller goes back and forth over the new pavement, compressing and smoothing it even further to ensure a stable, high quality surface. 

In addition to the humans working together to build the new roadway, other things are important to the overall success of the teamwork. The weather, for example, must cooperate - a crew can't lay asphalt in the rain. Even the ambient temperature must be at a certain point for the asphalt to set properly. Luckily for this team and the City of Oglethorpe, the weather recently has helped advance this project's progress. 

Project managers and contractors plan to re-open Buck Creek Bypass to traffic in a couple of months. With this benchmark date as the target, these workers will continue their dedication to teamwork - focused on safety and efficiency - and ensuring that Oglethorpe and drivers have a durable corridor for years to come.

For the past 10 months, road construction crews have been grading the land that will be the future East Sparta Bypass, a 3.1 mile highway from SR 15/SR 22 north of High School Lane on the north end to SR 15 just north of Shoal Road on the south end. The roadway is really starting to take shape. Here, on the south end, the area has been cleared of all trees and brush. 

Heading north toward SR 16, you'll find locations of the cleared land that are peppered with tiny orange cones. Blasting crews are removing granite deposits in the right-of-way and the cones mark places where holes have been drilled. 

On just the other side of SR 16 - the project's midpoint - a number of crews are 'cutting and filling.' This area in East Central Georgia is full of rolling hills and the contractors need to remove or add dirt and rock as needed to ensure the new roadway corridor is brought to the final grade of the roadway. Here, teams are doing the 'filling', as dump trucks drive in and out, releasing enormous loads of dirt and then heading out to get more. Bulldozers and compacting rollers are in constant motion, spreading out the material that will be packed into a firm earth foundation. As we travel northward, you can see a long stretch that has been compacted into a flat, stable surface.

So where do those dump trucks get all those tons of dirt? It comes from just up the hill! This is where the 'cutting' part of the process happens. About a half mile north of the SR 16 intersection, excavators continue digging and shaping the site. The dirt they remove goes right into the dump trucks that take it to the bulldozers and rolling compactors. 

As the 'cutting and filling' goes on, other tasks are underway throughout the length of the project. A number of culverts and underground pipe are being installed to ensure that the future highway will have efficient water drainage.

Project managers say the highway's subgrade preparation, grading and leveling will continue well into 2024. For most residents of Sparta and Hancock County, the project is pretty much 'out of sight,' so it may be easy to wonder what could possibly be taking such a long time. In road construction time, however, your average highway project routinely takes several years just for design and planning; the actual project work can then take another few-to-several years. When creating new infrastructure that needs to be safe for the thousands of drivers and vehicles that will use it each day - and also be durable for decades - our engineers and contractors are partners in ensuring every step is done correctly to specifications. These first stages of earth shaping and leveling may take a while, but all the steps are absolutely essential in creating a highway that will provide a new route - as well as improved economic and civic development benefits.  

Over the past year, the Cusseta Road, Old Cusseta Road and Farr Road area around the Interstate 185 overpass has been in a state of transformation, and right now you can really see how and where you'll be driving in the future. It's an extensive project going in multiple directions so there are a number of active construction locations throughout the corridors on any given day. 

Contractors have set up a staging area just south of the current Farr Road intersection with Old Cusseta Road, adjacent to the interstate overpass. If you want to estimate how much is going on overall, just look at all the concrete pipe, gravel, asphalt, and dirt comes and goes daily. Looking just to the west under the Interstate 185 overpass, the future new lanes have been graded and show the larger roadway 'footprint' that will come with the new interchange and ramps. 

Ready to see something that really shows how much excavation has occurred here in recent months? Take a look at the area just to the west of the interstate. See that group of engineers and construction managers, having a field meeting there? Look at how much earth and rock the crews have removed at just that one location! If we go a bit more to the west on Old Cusseta Road, we see an excavating team continuing to carve out lanes that will eventually lead to a new ramp at Interstate 185.

If we head back eastward on Old Cusseta Road toward the apartment complexes on the north side of the street, we see multiple excavating crews digging out new lanes here as well. With so many local residents affected by the construction, contractors want to get this work done as quickly as possible. Going up north on the current Farr Road, off in the distance we can see yet another excavating team removing tons of dirt and shaping the future new-and-improved-and-relocated Farr Road. That ridge of earth next to the excavator is about five-to-six feet tall - it shows how much higher the land surface was previously, how much work contractors have done already as well as how much is still left to do.  

With so many excavators removing so much dirt, so many dump trucks are constantly getting loaded and then making hundreds of trips to and from the numerous work sites each day. Plus, where there are excavators there are also bulldozers smoothing down the freshly-dug and graded land. So here's yet another reminder to #DriveAlert #ArriveAliveGA when passing through the area. Watch for the orange and white barrels, and often you'll also see a construction worker with flags, directing traffic when huge vehicles are close to the roadway. There's so much to be distracted by in this project, as our contractors and crews continue their progress.