GDOT cuts road repairs, instead of jobs

TV monitor at budget hearings showing page of proposed 2009 draft budget, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008. (Dave Bender)

Georgia Department of Transportation Commissioner Gena Evans today laid out proposals for recouping her department’s $456 million dollar deficit – in part.

GDOT has to cut that sum from the 2009 fiscal year, to make up for that sum in the '08 budget.

GDOT Commissioner Gena Evans holds up a folder containing the 2009 budget, at a meeting with the transportation board on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008 where she put forth budget-cutting proposals. (Dave Bender)

Among the tough proposals Evans offered the board was slashing over 500 jobs – a road not taken by the transportation board:

“Oh, we’re ecstatic. We’re really thrilled. I mean, to me, every time you saw a list from us, the last thing we wanted to do was lay off employees. It’s a very difficulty decision for the board between those state aid projects, that are local, community-driven projects versus laying off employees.”

Evans explains a point in the draft budget proposal to reporters after the GDOT transportation board session on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008. (Dave Bender)

Evans says a one-day employee furlough program was also ruled out.

GDOT spokesman David Spears, however, says the Local Assistance Road Program (LARP), which funds local and county road repairs, including pot holes, was among the major cutbacks the board agreed to:

“It’s a total of 52 million dollars that we’ll be unable to distribute to local governments in the coming year. We’re hoping we’re going to be able to identify new funding sources or new savings as we go from month to month in our budget process, and be able to redirect some of that money back into local assistance.”

Evans faced tough questioning from the board members during the morning session, including issues of protocol.

Board Member Dana Lemon, who represents the 13th Congressional District, chided Evans over forwarding the draft directly to the Office of Planning and Budget, without the board getting a look at it first:

Evans: “Ms. Lemon, I’m not sure when we would have possibly been able to get any more information…”

Lemon: “Gina, we get inundated all the time with stuff from you guys, so we could have seen it; we might not have been able to address it at a meeting, but we all could have at least looked at it, reviewed it…”

Officials say that rocky interchange is but a verbal example of the bumpy road drivers can expect on Georgia’s highways and interchanges in the coming fiscal year.

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GDOT planning Atlanta HOV lane fees

The Georgia Department of Transportation is considering a tiered pay program for Atlanta’s 44-miles of interstate High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes.

GDOT spokesperson Ericka Davis says the program would allow large car pools to ride the lanes for free, but would likely charge smaller carpools and single vehicles.

The fees would be used to pay for the system, and fund mass-transit projects.

GDOT officials recently returned from a visit to Texas to examine similar programs in that state, and is currently "in the middle of working out the logistics" of the plan, Davis said.

Davis said the plan would cost upwards of $470 million dollars.

GDOT Commissioner Gena Evans and officials from the Governor's Office also met with U.S. DOT Secretary Mary Peters to discuss the plan, Davis added.

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Audit finds flaws in GDOT

GDOT Commissioner Gena Evans explains a point in the draft budget proposal to reporters after a transportation board session that also dealt with major budget overruns, on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2008. (Dave Bender)

A state audit of Georgia's transportation department found that the agency used flawed accounting procedures when assessing its budget.

The audit found the Georgia Department of Transportation used two different accounting standards to draft its ledger. It also found some 15 misstatements throughout the ledger because of the use of two different standards.

The agency said it concurred with many of the findings and that it is already implementing procedures to fix the problems.

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(AP)

Kia assembly plant interchange opens

Kia Motors assembly plant and new access road, along I-85 between West Point and LaGrange, Ga., December, 2008. (Dave Bender)

The interchange and connecting roads allow direct access to the Kia Motors assembly plant, between West Point and LaGrange in Troup Co.

GDOT Commissioner Gena Evans said at a ceremony held Wednesday at the site that the $80.7 million project was completed over a month ahead of its 18-month schedule:

“This effort proves that design-build can be successful when applied to the right projects,” Evans said. “Georgia DOT is proud to have played a role in helping to bring new jobs and improved mobility to the area. It is a great day for West Point, Troup County and the entire State of Georgia.”

The project includes new frontage and access roads, two new bridges, improvements to connecting roadways and new traffic signals, according to a statement from the Governor’s Office, and is largest GDOT construction project so far.

Officials say the $1.2 billion plant will employ more than 2,500 employees. and is scheduled to open in November, 2009.

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House Committee Debates GDOT Changes

A special House Subcommittee on Transportation Funding is meeting at this hour to hear testimony on Senate Bill 200. The measure - titled the Transforming Transportation Investment Act - would abolish the State Road and Tollway Authority and create the State Transportation Authority.

Senate Speaker pro tem Tommie Williams testified in favor of the measure, telling the committee that trying to appease board members, lobbyists and politicians means little gets done by the DOT.

SB 200 would also relegate the Georgia Department of Transportation to the task of road maintenance and inspections.

The bill also forces GDOT to compete alongside private contractors for transportation construction projects.

GDOT Eyes Federal Rail Funding

Federal passenger rail funding is in the sights of the Georgia Department of Transportation. GDOT says it has starting putting together a comprehensive state rail plan in order to apply for the funds. If Georgia gets the money, state officials would work with neighboring states on connecting high-speed rail service.

(Atlanta Business Chronicle)

I-85 dubbed 'Scenic Byway'

Georgia's interstate highway system. Click on the map for more information. (DOT)

The Georgia Department of Transportation has named I-185 a Scenic Byway, ensuring that billboards and other visual blight will not be allowed along the thoroughfare.

The highway passes through Troup, Harris and Muscogee counties, and ends at Ft. Benning, near Columbus.

GDOT Board member Sam Wellborn says of the move:

“This is a very important event for our entire region, not only will this designation preserve an already prestigious corridor but it will forever prevent billboards and will increase tourism.”

GDOT Commissioner Harold Linnenkohl will present a proclamation to Wellborn and Gloria Weston-Smart, Executive Director of Keep Columbus Beautiful Commission, in support of the I-185 Scenic Byway designation, at a ceremony in Atlanta on Thursday. A ceremony will be held Friday morning at a welcome center along exit 12.

The interstate joins seven other similarly-designated state roads, and the group says the title will be listed on state and federal maps.

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Drought could soon affect state road construction

Georgia's drought could soon put the brakes on road construction across the state. David Spear with the state's Department of Transportation says delays could soon be on the horizon.

"It's approaching a level where you could see some real impact on projects..where they'll have to start delaying things. We're not there yet, but it's on the horizon. Our people are talking to the Governor's folks, and Natural Resources, and our contractors as well".

Road contractors need water for concrete mixing, dust control on projects, and erosion control--which is federally mandated.

"Ideally, from the contractor's perspective, we love when it doesn't rain because it means they can go out and get their work done. We've certainly had more than enough of a good thing in terms of absence of rain for a while. We'd all take a few shut-down construction days if it meant we were going to get some decent rain" said Spear.

The drought problem could add to some recent criticism the GDOT has received. A recent state audit said Georgia is well behind other states in getting road projects to completion.

GDOT aiding out-of-gas motorists

Bennie Conley gave out his first gallon of gasoline less than an hour into his afternoon shift.

"I didn't get one this early yesterday," Conley said as he helped another driver stranded without fuel alongside Interstate 285 east of Atlanta.

Conley works for the Georgia Department of Transportation as a highway emergency response operator.

With gasoline in many parts of the Atlanta area topping $4 a gallon, state roadside assistance crews are seeing a spike in the number of motorists who run out of fuel.

"The majority of them probably figured they could make it to an exit," Conley said. "Due to the traffic volume when they chose to get on the highway, it just wasn't possible."

A 5-gallon canister used to last Conley's entire eight-hour shift. Now, he fills up the tank once, and sometimes twice a day.

On a recent afternoon, Conley gave fuel to about one stranded motorist per hour. Each motorist gets about a gallon or two; just enough to get them to the nearest filling station.

"It's not uncommon for me to run into people who ask for more," Conley said. "That's not possible."

Because taxpayers foot the bill for the fuel Conley and the other crews give out for free, the surge in stalls is taking its toll, according to state communications specialist Monica Luck.

"You've got a 5-gallon gas container, it used to be you could take five dollars and fill that up," Luck said. "Now, we're having to spend $20 a can."

In Georgia, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $3.95, slightly less than the national average of $3.98, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.

Conley acknowledges some drivers try to take advantage of the system, but he records the license plate number of every driver he assists to help weed out those taking more than their share.

For Conley, who said he likes his job because he likes to help people, helping so many drivers who run out of gasoline teaches him an important lesson.

"Once you get off the job and get home, you've got to look at yourself and say, 'I've got to make sure I don't end up in that predicament,"' he said.

(The Associated Press)

GDOT puts major Macon project on hold

Atlanta's 14th Street bridge under construction, crossing Interstate 75. (Dave Bender/file)

Georgia’s Department of Transportation is putting a major Bibb County highway project on hold. The DOT has a shrinking budget.

That's why the department put the planned interchange at Interstate 75 and 16 in Macon back on the shelf. DOT spokesman David Spears says it could sit there upwards of a decade:

“Principally and primarily, of course, it’s about funding; that’s in excess of a $320 million dollar project, and we’ve been working on it 20 years and we need to get it built, but we just don’t have $320 million dollars that we can apply to it right now.”

Macon officials expressed disappointment over the decision, but say there are smaller projects that could be dealt with before 2018.

State Transportation officials told the Federal Highway Administration that Georgia has a number of projects they’d want included in any potential economic stimulus package by the incoming Obama Administration.

“We have identified – just of our own projects within the department – about $2.2 billion dollars worth of work have begun, “shovel-ready,” so to speak, by sometime in the middle of next year,” Spears says.

Spears says adding in other state transportation-related projects including aviation, MARTA, and commuter rail could bring the total to almost three and a half billion dollars.

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Vance Smith seeking GDOT post

State Republican Representative Vance Smith, of Pine Mountain, wants to be the next commissioner of the Department of Transportation. Smith announced his interest in the position to Governor Sonny Perdue last week.

Current commissioner, Harold Linnenkohl, who has held the post for the last four years, is stepping down as of Nov. 30.

Smith is the president of Smith Construction Company, a construction and earthmoving concern, according to the state legislature website.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of Rep. Smith and, and here for state transportation issues.

Survey: State of Georgia Scores High in Web-Access

The state government is making progress in providing "sunshine law" public information on the Internet, but conditions are still partly cloudy in Georgia, according to a survey by The Associated Press.

The survey of 20 categories, ranging from death certificates to political campaign contributions and expenses, was part of a national campaign by the American Society of Newspaper Editors to gauge Online access of public information in all 50 states. It was conducted in February as a runup to Sunshine Week, March 15-21.

It did not include the Web site www.open.georgia.gov, which was unveiled at the beginning of the year as a gateway for information and documents concerning state expenditures to provide services to its citizens.

That site "speaks to the level of transparency that state government is trying to achieve," said Michael Clark, communications director of the Georgia Technology Authority.

The AP survey found some excellent Online resources in some cases, and stumbling blocks on other agency Web sites.

For example, the State Ethics Commission site was found to have "exemplary" search engine technology to find personal financial disclosure reports from state officials. It is easy to search, understand, download or print information such as campaign contributors and lobbyist reports.

On the other hand, reports on inspections of hospitals, nursing homes and child care centers are available through the Office of Regulatory Services in the Department of Human Resources -- only not online. Visitors to the site, http://ors.dhr.georgia.gov, are directed to write to the offices at an Atlanta address to obtain the information at 25 cents per page.

The survey found a lot of comparable statewide school test data at the Department of Education site, http://www.gadoe.org, but it was difficult to find without some familiarity.

But anyone seeking internal and external audit reports can find a search engine that is top notch and easy to navigate at the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts' http://www.audits.state.ga.us/index.html.

State Department of Transportation records of projects and contracts were equally easy to find at the GDOT Office of Contract Administration, http://tomcat2.dot.state.ga.us. The site offers detailed descriptions of proposals, bids and awards for both contractors and consultants.

Authors of the survey report said Sunshine Week surveyors "discovered some states that are doing a fantastic job of providing information to the public; some are outstanding only in certain categories. The survey teams also found some states weren't so good, and others that are working on getting better."

Georgia was ranked in the top third among the 50 states with its Internet access to public information. With data supplied in 14 of the 20 categories, the state tied with five others in 10th place. Texas ranked the highest, with all 20 catergories, followed by New Jersey with 18.

The information least likely to be found online were death certificates and gas pump overcharge records, each found on the Web sites of only eight states. Also infrequently posted online were schools' building inspections and/or safety ratings, which are posted by only nine states, and school bus inspection reports, 12 states.

Clark, of the Georgia Technology Authority, said one obstacle to complete disclosure is that there is no one agency in charge of what information must be displayed online.

"For some agencies, we provide the content management system," Clark said. "You're looking at the IT infrastructure, and we don't have authority over the content. We provide the tools. What they do with it is up to them."

He said he has found "there's a great deal of information out there on the state Web sites. I don't know if I have a strong sense of what gaps exist. That's not something that I've researched."

Overall, Clark said, the agencies are doing a better job of providing services online than they did when he started with the Technology Authority in 2000.

In a national survey by the Brookings Institution that grades state Web sites in overall design and efficiency, Georgia improved from a rank of 38 two years ago to No. 2 in the nation in the latest, Clark said.

"It's a continual evolution in making more available," said Bert Brantley, spokesman for Gov. Sonny Perdue.

"There's a push and a pull between having information and records available" and the use of taxpayer money to make it available, Brantley said.

He said the Open Georgia Web site contains things like salaries and payments to contractors that always has been available but difficult to access. But it costs money to select information that can be uploaded easily to a site that can be searched by the public.

(AP)