2 Fort Oglethorpe roads could be resurfaced

Two Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, roads could get a facelift if their resurfacing projects receive federal funding in 2020.

City officials recently submitted resurfacing projects for Thomas Road and Fant Drive to the Chattanooga Metropolitan Planning Organization for funding consideration.

If funds are available for the 2020 cycle, the repair work would be completed as part of the Transportation Improvement Program through the Georgia Department of Transportation. The program helps maintain infrastructure within urbanized areas.

The 0.25-mile section of Thomas Road slated for rehabilitation has not been paved in more than 25 years, said Jeff Long, director of Public Works.

“[It] has several bad places in it and is past due to be resurfaced,” Long said of the section included in the project area, which runs from Lafayette Road to Gross Crescent.

Fant Drive, on the other hand, has had recent repairs, but being a popular road is in need of more, officials said. The project covers the entire 0.5-mile road.

A portion of the roadway, which Long said sees about 8,000 vehicles each day, was resurfaced with binder asphalt just last year to prevent water from seeping into the cracks in its surface, which were causing road failures, he said.

Still, Long added, there is more work to be done.

If funding is approved, improvements for both roads would include leveling, expanding the shoulders, repairing potholes and other pavement disintegration, and marking lanes on the road with thermoplastic striping material, in addition to other surface treatment work.

The total cost for both projects is $337,600, City Manager Jennifer Payne-Simpkins said.

If the funding is awarded, the city of Fort Oglethorpe would be required to provide a 20 percent match, which comes to $67,500.