COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. (WJBF) – A road widening project on Furys Ferry, the biggest road project out of four currently underway in Columbia County, is about halfway done.
It will be going from two lanes to four. There’s already been a few temporary lane closures because of it, and more can be expected.
It’ll be spanning from Evans to Locks Rd. all the way to the state line.
“Two lanes in each direction from Evans to Locks Road to Hardy McManus Road,” said Kyle Titus, the Engineering Division Director for Columbia County. “And then from Hardy McManus Road to the state line, there will be resurfacing in select right-turn and left-turn lane widenings. At Hardy McManus Road and Furys Ferry there will be a roundabout there as well.”
Lane closures have caused some traffic delays.
“We try not to have full closures, but occasionally they happen depending on what they’re trying to do,” Titus said. “And I think until this point we’ve only had partial lane closures, which allows some traffic to move through without completely closing down the road.”
Some folks who drive the road often said the construction hasn’t bothered them. “It didn’t affect me, yeah. It’s cool, they made it wider, yeah,” said Osman Ali.
Others say they wish it would be cleaner – especially around homes on the road.
“I think the thing that bothers me the worst is how, once they’ve cleared this stuff out, that it’s just the people, like the entrances to the neighborhoods and the people that have houses on Furys Ferry, it’s just a mess along there,” said Elaine Davis. “They’re not keeping the grass cut back, it just looks really rough.”
But, everyone we spoke to agrees that it’s needed. The road- along with the other county roads under construction – is expanding to accommodate for growth.
“This is one of four major roadway projects,” Titus said. “The other three are Lewiston Road widening, Flowing Wells Road widening which is wrapping up right now, and the Horizon South Parkway widening which is just getting underway.”
The four projects combined cost about $94 million. The Furys Ferry Road project alone is $32 million. All are funded by the Transportation Investment Act.
“By improving capacity and improving operations, you also improve safety,” Titus said. “So, a lot of improvements go along with this project allows the county to continue to grow without overburdening the current system.”
He said the project should be complete by the end of 2025, and will handle traffic for 20 or so years into the future.
