The intersection improvement project at State Route 15 Alternate and Apple Valley Road will begin on June 9. The project will be ongoing for approximately for three to four months during this summer.
The work will require the closure of the intersection for approximately two to three months beginning on June 9. Detours will be in place for the duration of the project.
Jackson County Board of Commission chairman Pat Bell said Monday, “I’m really pleased that we are going to fix one of the worst intersections in this county. It has been a long time coming…It is really an achievement for a county to get the DOT to close a road for three months. It just doesn’t happen. We have really good people working on this.”
The project includes lowering the grade to improve sight distance, as well as the addition of turn lanes to provide refuge for left turning vehicles as they wait for through traffic to clear the intersection.
“We ask the public to please bare with us as we reconstruct this intersection,” said Russell McMurry, a district engineer with the Georgia Department of Transportation. “We realize this will be an inconvenience this summer but we believe this project will improve the functionality of the intersection.”
The detour for State Route 15 Alternate northbound will run on State Route 82 to State Route 98 and the reverse for State Route 15 Alternate southbound. The Apple Valley/South Apple Valley Road detour will be utilizing the existing county roads which are northeast or southwest of the intersection location on State Route 15 Alternate. Both the State Route 15 Alternate and the Apple Valley/South Apple Valley Road detours will be signed to get the motorists around this intersection improvement project.
The DOT encourages motorists to slow down in this construction work zone area and follow the signs in place for the detours.
Georgia DOT urges travelers to call 511 for updated information about this project. Georgia 511 is a free phone service that provides real-time traffic and travel information statewide, such as traffic conditions, incidents, lane closures, construction, and delays due to bad weather. Callers also can transfer to operators to request assistance or report incidents 24 hours a day, seven days a week. More information is available at www.511ga.org.