Credit: Bryan County News
Published: Aug 25, 2022, 2:14 PM
State officials held a ribbon cutting Thursday in Bloomingdale to mark the completion of the $51 million Jimmy Deloach extension project, which links Savannah’s port to I-16 and could ease truck traffic in Blitchton and Black Creek.
Truckers leaving the port have long taken Highway 80 to Highway 280 and then to I-16 in order to avoid the weigh station on 16, and as business at the port has boomed so has truck traffic rolling up 80 into Bryan County.
Here’s the announcement from GDOT.
Officials from the Georgia Department of Transportation (Georgia DOT), Georgia Ports Authority, Chief of Staff for Governor Brian Kemp Bert Brantley, and members of the DeLoach family gathered Thursday for a ribbon cutting ceremony marking the completion of the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway extension project. The Jimmy DeLoach Parkway Extension Project is the final project completing the 12.5 miles of Jimmy DeLoach Parkway which now links Interstate 16 with the Savannah Port.
“This project is the culmination of many years of planning and coordination by GDOT and the Georgia Ports, as well as anticipation from the local community,” said State Transportation Board Secretary Ann R. Purcell, who represents Congressional District 1. “As Georgia continues to be a leader in freight mobility, projects like this one – designed to effectively move truck traffic while increasing safety on surrounding roads – will be paramount.”
“The completion of Jimmy Deloach Parkway to I-16 will reduce highway emissions, improve transit times and safety for both motor carriers and local commuters,” said Griff Lynch, executive director of the Georgia Ports Authority. “These gains are important to our independent truckers, for whom efficient transit is key to profitability. Georgia’s expanding infrastructure also supports the economy across our five-county region, where 70,000 jobs rely on port activity.”
The Jimmy DeLoach Parkway extension project represents a $51 million investment in southeast Georgia. The 3.8-mile project consisted of widening and reconstructing State Route 17/Bloomingdale Road; constructing a new road from Pine Barren Road to SR 26/US 80; constructing six bridges; reconfiguration of the intersection of Jimmy DeLoach Parkway and US 80 into a grade separated, limited access interchange; and adding roundabouts at the ramps for the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway and I-16 interchange.
This project is expected to improve long-term efficiency, reliability and cost-competitiveness in the movement of workers and goods.