Friday March 29th, 2024 4:50AM

GHMPO: Work continues on freight study for Hall, Jackson counties

By B.J. Williams

The Gainesville-Hall Metropolitan Planning Organization (GHMPO) has been working with a consultant for just over a year on a regional freight study, and this past week, members of the GHMPO Technical Coordinating Committee got a progress report from the consulting firm conducting the study. 

Adam Young, a consultant with CDM Smith, told the committee that engineers, among other things, have targeted 38 projects - short, mid and long range - for the region, which includes all of Hall County and a portion of Jackson County.

In an interview with AccessWDUN, Young said among the most significant short-term projects will be the widening of both I-85 and I-985 in Hall County. He said increasing I-985 from two lanes to three lanes in both the north and southbound directions will make for safer and more efficient travel.

"Anyone that's traveled I-985 understands the importance of moving efficiently along the corridor and keeping speeds at the marked speed limit," Young said. "Even the slightest [action] of somebody stepping on the brakes has a domino effect on the flow of traffic. What we're trying to do is identify the safest options moving forward for the community."

Young also pointed out in his presentation last week that freight tonnage in the study area is increasing at a rate of about 1.2% each year; the national increase is 1.1%.

GHMPO Transportation Planner Joseph Boyd said those figures show that making sure freight travel is safe and efficient is key to business growth in Hall County.

"There's a lot of freight movement in Hall County, there's tons of industries and businesses that have to get freight in and out of the county from all sorts of different directions - from Atlanta to Greenville north Asheville, etc. - so I think it's a huge deal," Boyd said. "Those trucks are on the roadway all the time moving things every day, so that's a big part of our roadway [usage] in Hall County."

In addition to the list of 38 proposed projects for the region, the following items have been completed in the study, according to GHMPO:

  • Developed goals and objectives for a regional freight mobility plan
  • Developed performance measures to assess the region's freight network
  • Assessed freight trends, opportunities and needs
  • Formed freight policies

The anticipated completion date for the freight study is December 31, 2018. 

Go to the GHMPO website to see the study as it stands to date. 

  • Associated Categories: Homepage, Local/State News, Politics
  • Associated Tags: I-85, I-985, GHMPO, Gainesville Hall Metropolitan Planning Organization, freight study
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