County lays out $224.9M share and project priorities for T‑SPLOST 2

County staff presented a draft breakdown for Henry County’s share of a renewal transportation sales tax, recommending $224,900,000 tied to specific categories of work.

"Big picture, the county's program recommends 78,000,000 for major road projects, 65,000,000 for intersections, 16,500,000 for road resurfacing," Clayton Cart told the joint meeting, adding that staff also proposed $11,000,000 for grant matching, $4,000,000 for trails and a 15% contingency to manage uncertain construction costs.

Cart listed active and planned projects funded under T‑SPLOST 1 and proposed for T‑SPLOST 2, including the McDonough Parkway extension, Rock Quarry Road widening, Mill Road widening and State Route 81 widening. He said county staff identified over 40 major roadway projects countywide and described a tier‑2 list of projects that would be programmed only if collections exceed estimates.

Cart and other staff emphasized intersections as a near‑term focus because road widening costs (which Cart estimated around $21,000,000 per mile) are high; intersection improvements often address congestion and crash risk at lower cost and higher near‑term deliverability.