Approvals Received for McGinnis Ferry/400 Interchange
2/21/2013
ATLANTA – The Forsyth County Legislative Delegation today learned that the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) has approved an Interchange Justification Report (IJR) for a project long supported by the delegation: a new interchange at Georgia State Route 400 and McGinnis Ferry Road in south Forsyth County.
“We are very pleased that this important new interchange received approval from the Federal Highway Administration and GDOT. A new interchange at 400 and McGinnis Ferry will provide improved mobility and drive economic development in our growing community. We have supported this project from the start and will continue to work diligently for additional approvals and funding for this project,” said the Forsyth County Legislative Delegation.
An IJR is a required assessment of any proposed new interchange that must be approved by both the Federal Highway Administration for the Interstate Highway System and GDOT for limited access State Highways, like Georgia 400. The purpose of an IJR is to analyze the impact and suitability of proposed or possible new interchanges on the operational integrity of the affected highway. In this instance, GDOT engineers and planners reviewed the IJR submitted by Forsyth County and concluded the proposed interchange would provide operational improvement in the area.
Although construction funding for the interchange has not yet been programmed, GDOT plans to utilize federal funds previously earmarked for the project to begin preliminary design work in Fiscal Year 2014. Former U.S. Representative John Linder and U.S. Representative Lynn Westmoreland previously set aside a total of $3.5 million to be used on the estimated $22 million project.
“This is a long-awaited and much needed interchange,” said State Transportation Board Member Rudy Bowen. “The Department has spent more than $70 million in recent years upgrading McGinnis Ferry Road and improving east-west mobility for Forsyth, Gwinnett and North Fulton motorists. This will be a continuation of those efforts.”
“I’m delighted,” added fellow Transportation Board Member Emily Dunn. “Forsyth County is not only a wonderful place to live; it is developing into a huge economic driver for the Metro Northside. Better connectivity to GA 400 will complement both of those attributes.”
The Forsyth County Legislative Delegation includes: Rep. Mark Hamilton (R-Cumming), Rep. Geoff Duncan (R-Cumming), Rep. Calvin Hill (R-Canton), Rep. Mike Dudgeon (R-Johns Creek), Rep. Kevin Tanner (R-Dawsonville), Sen. Jack Murphy (R-Cumming) and Sen. Steve Gooch (R-Dahlonega).
Although this is just the beginning of a very long process, I think this is a very positive addition to our county once it is achieved. It will help push ahead the Taubman project that will mean millions in sales tax revenue to the county, and hundreds of additional jobs. We should all hope that we can get this to happen sooner, instead of later, for the good of the county as a whole. The Governor appears to be dedicated to his pursuit of pushing economic development and he sees Forsyth County as an integral part of this revitalization. Many hurdles to cross but a big thank you to our delegation and the GDOT for getting us to this point.
Cindy Jones Mills
Forsyth County Commissioner, District 4
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