Friday, January 31, 2025–9:05 a.m.
-John Bailey, Rome News-Tribune-
This story is possible because of a news-sharing agreement with the Rome News-Tribune. More information can be found at northwestgeorgianews.com
One of the most visible, and asked-about, Georgia Department of Transportation projects is the widening of Second Avenue, but many others are in the works in the background.
GDOT District 6 Engineer Grant Waldrop brought Rome City Commissioners up to speed on several projects during their retreat on Thursday — including the final phases of the Loop as well as the long-awaited 411 Connector, now known as the Rome Cartersville Development Corridor.
Second Avenue project
The Second Avenue widening project is a $21.4 million project underway on 0.73 miles of road and is anticipated to be complete in the winter of 2026.
“Instead of the Y intersection, you’ll have a standard signalized intersection,” Waldrop said.
That project will add two right-turn lanes from Shorter Avenue/Turner McCall onto Second Avenue for those traveling from West Rome. One question has been what will happen to the additional road that used to connect Second Avenue to Shorter. It’s going to be closed, Waldrop said.
“We needed to remove that Y intersection; that was really a challenging design,” he said. The small section of property the road is on now will likely be put up for sale.
“We have a process for surplus property,” Waldrop told commissioners. “We try not to keep surplus property on the books.”
One of the challenges for the Second Avenue widening project has been the density of infrastructure under the road.
“What we’re working on right now is, we’re putting the drain pipes under the road,” he said, adding that with all the utility lines in the area it makes laying drain pipes pretty difficult.
Other project currently in the works:
Bridge replacement on U.S. 27 at Big Dry Creek
The $8.5 million bridge replacement project on U.S. 27 between Berry College and Mount Berry Mall is 39% complete and the expected completion date is March 2026. Currently the highway is down to one lane each direction.
“I appreciate everybody’s patience as we stage that,” Waldrop said.
Turner McCall Bridge replacement
The 0.30-mile bridge replacement on Turner McCall Boulevard is budgeted for $26 million with a project let date of July 2026 and funding expected to be available in Fiscal Year 2028. The bridge will be widened to seven lanes but will only have one lane open in each direction while the work is being done.
“This will really help this area for traffic when it’s done,” Waldrop said. “It’s going to cause a lot of traffic (when it’s under construction).”
He said that GDOT will not start this construction until Second Avenue is complete.
Completing Rome’s bypass: U.S. 27 to Ga. 101
The next leg of the bypass will be 3.3 miles from U.S. 27 at Georgia Highlands College to Ga. 101 and is expected to cost $183 million. This section will include two bridges, at Reeceburg Road and Old Rockmart Road.
The project will be let in April 2027 with funding expected to be available in Fiscal Year 2028.
“This will be the biggest contract in Northwest Georgia when it happens,” Waldrop said. “Nobody budgeted for these kind of increases when we originally planned these projects… The bypass projects have really turned into expensive projects.”
Completing Rome’s bypass: S.R. 101 to U.S. 411
The final phase of the Rome bypass connection is 4.6 miles starting from Ga. 101, Rockmart Highway. It will connect to the current loop terminus at U.S. 411. The project is expected to cost $136 million and bids will be let in January 2028
Rome Cartersville Development Corridor
This project, which is intended to provide a direct connection from U.S. 411 to I-75 and bypass Cartersville, has been in the works for decades.
“The news with this is that we’ve split it into two projects,” Waldrop said.
The first phase of the project will stretch from Grassdale Road in Bartow County to I-75, with the second phase connecting U.S. 411 — and Rome — to the corridor.
“Once you get on this route, there’s no more traffic signals,” he said.
While there won’t be any traffic signals, he said, like many of the newer GDOT projects there will be at least three roundabouts on the route.
“It really has been a challenge to make sure we have a viable route to get through,” Waldrop said.
Waldrop said he expects GDOT to have plans ready in August 2026 for the first phase of the project. The RCDC project is estimated at $176 million and funding won’t be available until, at the earliest, Fiscal Year 2028.
Traffic circle at Dean Avenue and 12th Street
The GDOT is planning a traffic circle at what is currently the signalized intersection of Dean Avenue at 12th Street.
Dean Avenue is also known as Ga. 101. They’re going to replace that intersection, and its traffic signal, with a roundabout. The project will likely take 18 months to two years.
Waldrop also talked about the need for deep patching and repaving Dean Avenue but said there’s not a lot of money allocated for resurfacing at this point.
“We’re ready to do Dean Avenue, I just don’t have it on the list right now,” he said.
Ga. 140 widening
The long-running project at Ga. 140 connecting Calhoun Highway and Adairsville is 98% complete. The $60 million project is expected to be completed in May.
“One retaining wall has been the bane of this project,” Waldrop said. “It took much too long… but I’m happy with the work that was done.”
