The Northern Arc is the proposed

$2.4 billion east-to-west superhighway that would connect I-75 in Bartow

County with I-85 in Gwinnett.

"We feel confident that

with true, responsible leadership governing the State house that the right

transportation initiatives will be championed for the right reasons with

money spent in the right places to help us manage our city's unbearable

traffic gridlock and poor air quality standards," said Jeff Anderson,

NATF President and co-chair.

Since January 2002, NATF has

swelled from a group of less than 50 individuals fighting to stop the

controversial 59-mile road to a membership of more than 5,500 citizens

across the state.

The grassroots organization

was formed following Governor Barnes' decision in late 2001 to accelerate

the Northern Arc project in the Atlanta Regional Commission's (ARC) 25-year

regional transportation improvement program (TIP).

Governor Barnes also held the

Northern Arc as an important pet project in his Governors' Transportation

Choices Initiative, also known as the (GTIC).

On the heels of Tuesday's sweeping

changes in Georgia's political landscape, NATF officials admit their efforts

may have played a role in the election outcome.

But they stop short of declaring

a complete victory in their quest to stop the Northern Arc project.

"There's no question that

Georgia's transportation impasse and the Northern Arc controversy played

a significant role in yesterday's election results," said Bob Charles,

NATF co-chair and Engineering Director.

"In our opinion, the road

is virtually 90 percent dead. However, we still need to work very closely

with Governor-elect Purdue and his team of transportation chiefs to ensure

that the Northern Arc is permanently removed from the ARC's long-term

transportation plans and that solutions to our region's most pressing

north-south transportation challenges are addressed in a timely and expeditious

manner."

From the first public information

meeting held in Forsyth County in January 2002, NATF has relied on a three-pronged

strategy in their efforts to educate all Georgians on the controversial

road, including: political, legal and grassroots awareness.

Dozens of public information

meetings were held throughout the first part of this year with standing-room

only crowds ­ many citizens anxious to learn more about the proposed

plans for the road and its impact on their homes, local communities and

businesses.

In April 2002, NATF retained

former, four-time Georgia Attorney General Mike Bowers and his firm, Meadows,

Ichter & Bowers, to represent their interests in the courts. A legal

intervention was filed on behalf of NATF in late August of this year,

challenging the constitutionality of the state's funding scheme in issuing

more than $820 million in bonds ­ the largest in the Georgia's history.

An appeal to the initial ruling

in that case has been filed in Georgia's State Supreme Court. An expedited

request to hear the case was filed by NATF due to the urgency of this

matter and great significance of these transportation projects to the

citizens of the state of Georgia. Despite the expedited requests, the

case will likely not be heard until January 2003.

"We still plan to move

forward in our legal appeal of the state's controversial bond funding

package," said Anderson. "Although we are thrilled beyond measure

that our political grassroots efforts to help Sonny get elected may have

played a part in the election upset, we won't give up our fight until

the road is a 100 percent, unquestionably, dead project."

The Northern Arc Task Force,

Inc. (www.NATF.com) is a non-profit grassroots concerned citizens' organization

founded in January 2002 that opposes construction of the controversial

Northern Arc ­ a proposed 59-mile limited access east/west superhighway

planned to connect I-75 in Bartow County with Georgia Hwy. 316 in Gwinnett

County. NATF is dedicated to preserving the quality of life for all Georgians

transportation improvements.