Two of the three major Georgia Department of Transportation projects in or around Putnam County are slightly ahead of schedule but with completion dates still far off in the future, according to a November DOT briefing given to Chamber of Commerce members.
The three projects include the 9.65-mile widening of U.S. 441 in northern Putnam, the 8.074-mile widening of U.S. 441 in southern Morgan County, and the initial work on a 10.5-mile widening of Georgia 44 (Greensboro Highway) from Putnam’s Harmony Road northward past Lake Oconee, Reynolds properties and I-20 to Athens Tech Drive in Greensboro.
As November began, the Putnam part of the U.S. 441 widening was well into the clearing- and-grubbing and utility-relocation phase of construction. This phase is reportedly 3 percent ahead of schedule and represents the completion of about 15 percent of the total project.
The contract for the construction of the two additional lanes went to E.R. Snell Contractor for $60.64 million. Completion is currently scheduled for Aug. 31, 2025, nearly three years away. The engineering, right-of-way acquisition, and utility relocation costs were not immediately available in the briefing but generally account for about one-third of a project’s overall costs.
Meanwhile, the $ 42.3 million Morgan County portion of the four-lane expansion is said to be 5 percent ahead of schedule, 60 percent completed and expected to open to traffic by late August next year. That construction contract also is held by E.R. Snell.
Regarding the Putnam-Greene widening of Greensboro Highway (Rt. 44), DOT is in the process of acquiring parts of 222 parcels between Harmony Road and Athens Tech Drive. Plans call for a second two-lane bridge at Lake Oconee (with no detours) and a double-lane roundabout at Linger Longer Road. According to the briefing, the additional two lanes will be added mostly on the west side of the current road.
Cost estimates for the total Greensboro Highway project run to $160.1 million, though a later figure may have already raised it to $168.5 million. These total costs include $104.6 million for construction, $8.7 million for engineering, $32.6 million for the right of- way acquisition, and $14.5 million for utility relocation.
Maps and other information about the GA 44 project are available at 0006253-gdot.hub.arcgis.com.
IAN TOCHER/Staff