Valdosta - Vision2045 Metropolitan Transportation Plan Available for Public Comment
For Immediate Release
June 30, 2020
The public comment period for Vision2045, the Long-Range Transportation Plan for the Valdosta-Lowndes County Metropolitan Planning Area will be available for public review and comments from July 1, 2020 until July 31, 2020. The federally required transportation plan is updated every five years to reflect the needs of the transportation network in the community. Over the past two years the Southern Georgia Regional Commission, as the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), local officials, and the public have been active in participating in the Vision2045 planning process by recommending projects that are beneficial to the community and sharing ideas. All of the input that we have received from the public has helped to create a final constrained list of projects within the Vision2045 Transportation Plan. These projects will help increase the efficiency and safety of the transportation network. The Valdosta Metropolitan Planning Area includes all of Lowndes County and portions of Berrien, Brooks and Lanier Counties.
One significant change in the Vision2045 Transportation Plan is the incorporation of national safety and time travel reliability performance measures and targets. In accordance with the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), states and MPOs are required to jointly develop quantifiable targets for transportation plans based on regulations promulgated by the Federal Highway and Transit Administrations. These performance measures and targets will also help to inform the public of specific projects that may be most beneficial to the community. This plan aims to help support national and local goals as well as create a more efficient transportation network through strategic project investment.
Projects that will have a big impact on the transportation network are the South Valdosta Truck Bypass, which will help deter freight traffic from downtown Valdosta and projects like the widening of Cherry Creek Road, Val Del Road, Skipper Bridge Road, Studstill Road, Old Clyattville Road, among others. The Lucas Richardson Road and Orr Road Extensions are planned to create an additional east-west connections in north Lowndes County. The Plan includes bicycle and pedestrian improvements as well as funding planned for future public transit operations in Valdosta and the continuation of rural public transit in the surrounding areas. The plan also recommends potential studies for the MPO to undertake in future years, such as a Smart Infrastructure Assessment to learn how prepared the Valdosta and Lowndes County communities are for connected and autonomous vehicles, additional corridor studies for future roadway connections, and studies to learn how local infrastructure can be more resilient to extreme weather events. More information and details about the draft constrained list of projects and potential studies can be viewed in the Vision2045 Transportation Plan.
During the Vision2045 Transportation Plan public comment period, the SGRC will host an Open House on July 20, 2020 from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm at the Southern Georgia Regional Commission to allow the public to review and submit comments about the draft Vision2045 Transportation Plan. This plan is also available for public review and comment at the Southern Georgia Regional Commission, 327 W Savannah Ave. Valdosta, GA 31601; all public libraries in Berrien, Brooks, Lanier and Lowndes Counties; on the VLMPO website (www.sgrc.us); on the Vision2045 website (http://www.valorgis.com/2045transport); all county government administration offices in Berrien, Brooks, Lanier and Lowndes Counties; and all city government administration offices in Lowndes County until July 31, 2020.
There will also be opportunities to engage virtually via our Facebook and Twitter pages at https://www.facebook.com/ValdostaLowndesMPO/ and https://twitter.com/VLMPO.
Comments are being accepted by email at chull@sgrc.us or amartin@sgrc.us ; by fax at 229-333-5312, or by mailing them to VLMPO, 327 W Savannah Ave., Valdosta, GA 31601.
Accessibility aids (interpreter, large print, etc.) will be made available at the open house if a written request is made at least one week prior to the event.
For more information please call Corey Hull, Transportation and Environmental Director at 229-333-5277.
The Southern Georgia Regional Commission is a regional planning and intergovernmental coordination agency which serves 45 municipalities in the 18 counties (Atkinson, Bacon, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brantley, Brooks, Charlton, Clinch, Coffee, Cook, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Pierce, Tift, Turner, and Ware) of South Georgia. Our dedicated staff team with local governments to increase the prosperity and quality of life in our region through programs including: Area Agency on Aging, Community and Economic Development, Transportation and Environmental Planning, Geographic Information Systems, Information Technology, Workforce Development and Small Business Loans.
The Southern Georgia Regional Commission is the designated Valdosta-Lowndes Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is a multi-county, federally funded transportation planning agency for the Valdosta Urbanized Area. The MPO conducts long range and short range transportation planning in areas including: highways and bridges, public transit, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, freight movement among other areas.
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