Columbia County details Horizon Chamberlin Connector to ease Grovetown congestion

Columbia County officials described plans for the Horizon Chamberlin Connector, a new roadway that will link Chamberlin Road with Horizon South Parkway and Gateway Boulevard to provide alternate routes for drivers in the Grovetown corridor.

Kyle Baxley, Deputy Director of Engineering Services, said the connector ‘‘connects Chamberlin Road to Horizon South Parkway and Gateway Boulevard’’ and is intended to reduce congestion at critical intersections such as Wrightsboro Road and William Few Parkway. ‘‘If you think of traffic as, you know, like water flowing through a pipe, you can make the pipe bigger and you can put more water through it,’’ Baxley said. ‘‘What putting a new road that’s going to connect two parallel roads and offer an alternate route for traffic to flow, it’ll reduce the amount of traffic at the critical intersection points.’’

County staff said the project will give drivers additional route choices so people trying to reach the interstate, shopping areas or school zones can avoid peak conflicts. Baxley noted that most traffic in the corridor now heads to William Few Parkway (where schools are located) or to Horizon South Parkway (where new shopping is concentrated), and that drivers currently must use a limited set of routes that funnel traffic into signalized intersections.

The contractor has 600 calendar days to complete the new-alignment project, county staff said. Major elements described include a roughly 500-foot bridge over Mill Branch, tie-ins at Horizon South Parkway and Gateway Boulevard, a new traffic signal at Horizon South Parkway, an upgraded four-leg signal at Canterbury Farms to accommodate new turning movements, and a roundabout at another connection point. The Gateway Boulevard tie-in will be a continuous connection without a new signal, officials said. Baxley said most construction will occur off the existing roadway so lane closures and direct impacts to traveling motorists should be minimal.

On cost and timing, Baxley said bids initially came in ‘‘way over budget, roughly about $3 million over budget.’’ He said engineering staff and the contractor worked together to value engineer the project and bring the cost below the county’s $15 million benchmark, ‘‘saving the county roughly $3 million’’; the project is funded by SPLOST. Staff told viewers the contractor was expected to begin work ‘‘within the next couple weeks.’’

The episode was produced as part of the county’s Building Columbia County series; host Hallie Turner, a community engagement specialist, said the county will return with a progress report in a few months. The presentation did not include a formal public hearing, motion, or vote on the project during the episode; participants described design features, timing and funding but did not request or record board action.

Next steps: county staff will begin contractor mobilization and initial construction activities and report progress in a future update, according to the episode.