GA Transportation $ Waste

Streetscaping in the CCID

Cobb County, Cumberland Community Improvement District and state officials celebrated the start of the $35 million widening of U.S. Highway 41 Friday, Dec. 6. U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson was the keynote speaker for the event. The project, scheduled for completion in 2017, will widen the area from Paces Mill to Akers Mill Roads to six lanes and add a multi-use trail. It is part of $52 million in enhancements to the U.S. Highway 41 corridor. These planned improvements will create long-term benefits for the northwest corridor, including safer traffic flow and greater capacity.

This information was copied from Cobb County web site. Recall that it has been said that Cobb is spending millions of dollars in and around the Cumberland area on previously planned road projects and these will be very important in addressing traffic when the new stadium opens.

So, how effectively are available funds used when Cobb County and the Cumberland CID work together? From above text:

“…officials celebrated the start of the $35 million widening of U.S. Highway 41 Friday, Dec. 6.”, and “…will widen the area from Paces Mill to Akers Mill Roads to six lanes and add a multi-use trail.”

The existing road is five lanes (now two lanes in each direction with a center turn lane) and will be widened to six lanes. This is a distance of about one mile. It will probably get a raised median as well. That’s one mile, one added lane, a “multi-use trail”, and a raised median.  All that for only THIRTY-FIVE MILLION DOLLARS.  What a deal. Makes me proud to be a taxpayer.

But, that’s “streetscaping”. It may be expensive but it will enhance property values in the Cumberland area.

But why is it so expensive? Well, lots of land will have to be purchased for Right-of Way and this is probably the most expensive real estate in Cobb County. Who owns this expensive real estate that will cost the county so much? That would be the same people who will watch their property values rise because of the streetscaping project. Also the same people who wanted the streetscaping project. And, when installing a raised median, it is necessary to remove the old road in its entirety and build a new road with the raised median.

Don’t worry, though. Cobb DOT is going to build a bridge over I-285 for practically nothing.

Source: Larry Savage