Open houses on widening of Highway 133 set for Aug. 11

MOULTRIE – The Georgia Department of Transportation on Aug. 11 will present plans for the proposed widening and reconstruction of State Route 133 between Moultrie and Albany.

GDOT conduct two simultaneous public information open houses 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. that day at Doerun Elementary School, 111 Mathis Ave., Doerun, and at Okapilco Elementary School, 3300 State Rout 33 North, Moultrie.

Transportation already have conducted open houses on the project in January 2015. Both were well attended and approximately 400 comments were submitted, GDOT officials said. The feedback prompted the agency to re-evaluate the project and the proposed alignment. Officials with the department say they have identified new alternatives to avoid environmental impacts and to address public concerns.

Plans will be displayed for four sections of SR 133, beginning south of U.S, Highway 319/ State Route 35 in Colquitt County and ending north of Holly Drive in Dougherty County. The same displays will be available for review at both locations.

Representatives from construction, design, right-of-way, traffic operations, utilities and environmental will be at each location to answer questions. There will not be a formal presentation, GDOT officials said.

Written or verbal statements may be submitted during the open house. Written comments also may be submitted by mail or online by Aug. 22. Mailed comments should be sent to: Eric Duff, State Environmental Administrator, Georgia Department of Transportation, 600 W. Peachtree St. NW, 16th Floor, Atlanta, GA, 30308.

A link for submission of online comments will become available after the open houses are conducted. To comment online when the link is activated, visit www.dot.ga.gov/PS/Public/PublicOutreach.

The project displays and plans will be available for review for 10 days after the open houses via the online Public Outreach section at www.dot.ga.gov. Copies also will be available at the Georgia DOT Moultrie area office at 120 Veterans Parkway North. and the Albany area office at 2060 Newton Road. Following the 10-day public comment period, a copy of all comments received will be available by request by writing DOT at the West Peachtree Street Northwest address.

SR 133 is a Governor’s Road Improvement Program (GRIP) corridor. The program, started in 1989, is designed to ensure Georgia communities have close access to four-lane state highways and the interstate highway system. In addition, SR 133 is a major north/south corridor that plays a vital role in moving goods, particularly in the heavily agricultural southwest area of the state, GDOT officials say.

Five sections of SR 133 from Troupeville Road in Brooks County to SR 35/East Moultrie Bypass in Colquitt County are already in various stages of construction at a total construction cost of $133 million. Two of those five sections are nearing completion. The total length of SR 133 to be reconstructed from Brooks County to the ending point in Dougherty County is approximately 66 miles, transportation officials say.