Cobb seeks $5M federal grant for road work

Cobb County officials are seeking $5 million from the federal government for construction of Akers Mill Road Managed Lanes Access, Phase 2.

This 5-0 decision was made Feb. 26 by the Cobb County Board of Commissioners. If approved, the $5,089,543 would come from the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) Grant program of the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to Cobb Transportation Agency Director Erica Parish in a Feb. 26 memo to County Manager Rob Hosack.

This project was recommended by the Cumberland Community Improvement District (CCID) and Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to supplement the I-75 Northwest Corridor Managed Lanes System project, which opened last year. Phase 2 would add a managed lanes entrance/exit ramp at an operating interchange at I-75 and Akers Mill Road and provide direct access to the 27-mile GDOT Managed Lanes System to relieve traffic congestion.

Anticipated growth in the Cumberland area includes more than 9 million square feet of new office, hotel, residential and recreational development that will include five new office towers, 640 new hotel rooms and 13,000 new residents. More than 100,000 motorists travel to and from the Cumberland area on a daily basis.

The total estimated cost for the Phase 2 project is $19,681,170. Of this amount, the required local match would be $14,591,627, or about 74 percent, to be funded by a mix of prior commitments from Cobb County, CCID, GDOT, Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) and State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA). Of Cobb County’s $15 million, as previously approved by the commissioners, to support funding of the Akers Mill Road Managed Lanes Access project, $4 million is designated for the county’s estimated share of the required local match for Phase 2. No additional county funding will be required.