The Hall County Commission will decide Tuesday evening whether to allocate over $700,000 towards improvements to an intersection near an elementary school in the north end of the county.
Hall County Public Works Director Ken Rearden said the three-way intersection of Odum Smallwood Road and Jim Hood Road has become a problem spot due to its layout and proximity to Mt. Vernon Elementary School. He said traffic studies of the area showed a need for improvements.
"That intersection comes in at a very strong angle right now. We're going to make it more of a 90 degree angle to make it safer for sight distance and making it easier to get in and out of the school," Rearden said.
Rearden said that several turning lanes as well as stacking lanes for buses would be added to Jim Hood Road if the project is approved, but that no traffic signal will be placed at the intersection. He also said there will still only be a stop sign on Odum Smallwood Road.
County officials presented the request for the funding to the commission at its Monday work session. The vote will come Tuesday at the voting session that was originally scheduled for Thursday, April 26, but moved to Tuesday two weeks ago.
