The McIntosh Road bridge over the Flint River is one of three routes local motorists can take into neighboring Spalding County.
But the bridge has fallen into disrepair and is in need of a major upgrade that will cost Fayette County about $651,000 in addition to $2.2 million in federal funds, the Fayette County Commission learned recently.
Complicating the matter is some confusion over a lack of participation from Spalding County, which had initially been projected to foot its share of the bill estimated at $490,000.
The commission decided to send Commissioners Lee Hearn and Steve Brown to make a presentation to their counterparts in Spalding in hopes of securing their commitment.
The bridge is in such disrepair that Fayette County will not run fire trucks on it, and it scored a 9 out of a possible 100 points on a recent sufficiency rating conducted by the Georgia Department of Transportation, officials said.
Commissioner Hearn, who formerly served as Fayette County’s public works director, said the bridge is safe based on the posted maximum loads on the bridge now, and a school bus can drive on it as long as it meets the 10-ton weight limit.
Fayette County’s funding for the project will come from the 2003 transportation sales tax revenues.
The project is anticipated to take place in 2014 with the federal funding, but Fayette County has to complete design and other preliminary environmental work in advance.
