GAINESVILLE - The Gainesville-Hall Metropolitan Planning Organization (GHMPO) would like to see some of the curves on busy Browns Bridge Road straightened while waiting on the planned widening of the road.<br />
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GHMPO officials said Wednesday the question arose Tuesday at a meeting of the GHMPO Policy Committee after it was noted that the widening of Thompson Bridge Road is on the Gainesville-Hall Regional Transportation Plan list, but not the widening of Browns Bridge Road.<br />
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Gainesville Mayor Danny Dunagan said Browns Bridge Road needs to be widened quicker than Thompson Bridge Road. <br />
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GHMPO Director Srikanth Yamala explained that they could add operational improvements, including straightening curves and adding turn lanes, to Browns Bridge Road and move it into the mid-term project list. <br />
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Dunagan made a motion to do so. Oakwood Mayor Lamar Scroggs seconded the motion and it passed by a unanimous vote.<br />
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STATE TRANSPORTATION FUNDING BILL OPPOSED<br />
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The committee also approved a resolution opposing the transportation funding bill now before the state Legislature. Many local governments around the state, including some in Hall County, have already passed similar resolutions or have plans to do so. They feel like this is taking money out of local pockets and putting it in the state treasury to help meet with the state's transportation funding needs. <br />
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If motor fuel is removed or exempted from local sales taxes, Georgia Department of Revenue data estimates that Hall County could lose approximately $10.3 million annually, according to local officials.<br />
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Mayor Dunagan noted the City of Gainesville maintains the traffic lights on state rights-of-way and does a lot of the mowing on state roads. The city, he said, spends approximately $885,000 a year to maintain the state lighting and roadways.
