Phase one of a large-scale project to reduce traffic in and around the intersection of Newnan Road and Highway 166 is nearly complete.

The first layer of asphalt has been laid on a road that will connect the back end of the county recreation complex to Newnan Road. The new road - which has yet to be named - also provides an entrance to the relocated convenience center, which had previously been several hundred yards closer to the bypass.

Before the road can be linked to the complex, a bridge will need to be built across an area of wetlands that sits at the southwest corner of the recreation center property.

It marks the first step in a project that county officials hope will significantly reduce traffic buildup in the area, which includes a campus of West Central Technical College, the county health department, the local jail and Sheriff’s Office, the recreation complex, the office of the Carroll County School Board and the convenience center.

During certain times of the day, traffic in the area reaches a standstill as hundreds of cars converge on the traffic light linking Newnan Road to the bypass.

“Don’t go out there early in the morning or during rush hour, ’cause you’ll be waiting awhile,” said Public Works/Solid Waste Superintendent Charles Pope.

Aside from the addition of the bridge, several steps are still required before the new road can be fully functional. A top layer of pavement is needed, and after that, the road will have to be lined. Before a traffic signal can be added where the new road meets Newnan Road, the Georgia Department of Transportation must first grant its approval.

This process requires the county to complete several studies as to the feasibility of the project, as well as to the impact that a traffic signal will have on traffic flow.

Pope said he is confident the congestion in the area fully warrants DOT approval.

As part of continued work on the project, the county plans to continue the initial road across Newnan Road, looping it around the department of health and connecting it with Independence Drive, which currently dead-ends into a wooded area. It would further be extended to Old Newnan Road, giving those coming from the school board or the jail an alternate entrance onto the bypass.

Both the extension of Independence Drive to Old Newnan Road and the loop of the Independence Drive, ranging from the entrance to West Central Tech to the new road connecting to the rear of the rec complex, will first require major clearing efforts. Both of the future roadways will cut through area that is undeveloped.

In all, the project itself was predominantly dependant on the vote in mid-September to continue the 1-percent special purpose local option sales tax program. Since the passage of the SPLOST referendum, the project has moved quickly.

Pope said he anticipates the detour around the highly trafficked intersection to be completed by March of next year. Of course, he said, this assumes that the county receives certain state approval in a timely manner.