Six aging county road bridges in Calhoun, Lee, Randolph and Terrell counties are scheduled to be replaced using Georgia Department of Transportation's Design-Build Bridge Replacement Program.

The bridges have a combined age of 371 years. They have posted weight limits and issues like minor cracking and abrasion and leaking deck joints.

The locations are County Road (CR) 134/Rice Road and CR 149/Elam Church Road at Falling Creek in Calhoun County; CR 3/Smithville Road at Muckaloochee Creek in Lee County; CR 160/Morgan Road at Cemochechobee Creek and CR 152/Recreation Camp Road at Pachitla Creek in Randolph County; and CR 82/Cox Road at Mossy Creek in Terrell County.

Georgia DOT recently announced the selection of Southern Concrete Construction Co. Inc./Neel-Schaffer Inc. for final design and construction. The Department anticipates construction to start in 2023. The start date is subject to change. The roads will close for 120 to 150 days and county governments will be notified in advance.

"The new bridges will enhance safety and enrich communities economically as weight restrictions on these local roads may have negative impacts on commercial vehicle traffic," said Georgia DOT Design-Build Project Manager Anthony Tate. “We’re excited to build upon the successes seen with previous bridge programs that had positive influences on those communities and region-wide.”

The Design-Build method combines design and construction activities. The bridges are grouped geographically, or bundled. This maximizes efficiency and speed in the replacement of locally-owned infrastructure. The concept has been successful, especially in rural areas due to lower impacts to the traveling public. 

Once completed, the bridges will join more than 50 others replaced across the state using the Design-Build Bridge Replacement Program. The program has replaced bridges in nearly 40 counties. In Southwest Georgia, the program has been used to replace county road bridges in Atkinson, Ben Hill, Grady, Tift, Colquitt, Quitman, Echols, Thomas, Wilcox and Cook counties.

More information about the Design-Build Bridge Replacement Program can be found at http://www.dot.ga.gov/PartnerSmart/Innovative/Pages/DBBridgeReplacementProgram.aspx and http://www.dot.ga.gov/PS/Innovative/DesignBuild.