The wreck that killed five people on GA 365 at Mt. Zion Road in Alto has renewed community calls for improved traffic safety measures. Local elected officials contacted Habersham County’s state legislative delegation to express their concerns. Soon, some of them will be able to voice those concerns directly to the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT).
“I want to assure you that we are taking immediate action to address the matter at hand,” Sen. Bo Hatchett tells Now Habersham. “I had the opportunity today (July 19) to engage in a productive conversation with the DOT commissioner, Russell McMurry, which allowed us to lay the groundwork for resolving this issue.”
Hatchett, along with state representatives Victor Anderson and Chris Erwin, have set up a meeting with county and state transportation department officials. In a joint statement to Now Habersham, they say they plan to “deliberate on the matter extensively.”
“It is our expectation that following this meeting, we will gain greater clarity on the projected timeline for addressing the situation effectively.”
Community input
Habersham County Sheriff Joey Terrell blames the high volume and severity of accidents on the crossovers and unregulated intersections on GA 365. At the July 17 county commission meeting, he urged elected officials and members of the public to push for safety improvements.
The community’s been here before.
In February 2022, elected and business leaders met with GDOT engineers to discuss safety concerns and growth along the 365 corridor. Partnership Habersham and the Chamber of Commerce organized the meeting. They held it four months after two people died in a crash on GA 365 at Mt. Zion Road. At that meeting, GDOT engineers discussed constructing an RCUT at that crossover to improve safety.
RCUT stands for Reduced Conflict U-turn. This engineered traffic control device is designed to prevent side road vehicles from crossing over multiple lanes of traffic.
In the past 17 months, GDOT has installed several RCUTs in the county but not at Mt. Zion.
Officials are now looking to expand public engagement and expedite change.
Hatchett, Anderson, and Erwin say they are “actively considering” holding public hearings and town hall meetings to discuss highway safety and explore potential solutions.
“We believe that an inclusive and collaborative approach will be instrumental in making informed decisions,” they say.
They’re also exploring with GDOT the feasibility of “expediting any and all safety enhancement projects along GA 365.”
Traffic control and planning
Those enhancements include more RCUTs.
“Several more are in progress, including one for Mt. Zion Road,” GDOT’s District One Communications Officer Elizabeth Johnson tells Now Habersham.
GDOT is also looking to add Habersham to the State Route 365 Planning Study.
The transportation department launched the study in preparation for the Northeast Georgia Inland Port. The 104-acre development in Hall County is scheduled to open in 2026.
The inland port will provide a direct rail link to the Port of Savannah by way of Norfolk Southern. It will also bring a significant amount of heavy truck traffic into the region, hauling cargo farther inland.
GDOT’s Planning Study will play a pivotal role in how the transportation department prepares for that growth and addresses the safety issues that will accompany it.
The Planning Study’s original focus extended only to Belton Bridge Road just north of Lula. Johnson says the GDOT Planning Office is working on expanding the study’s focus now to include Habersham.
“Similar to the SR 316 Planning Study, which started in one county, we have expanded our focus because the corridor runs across several counties. The same is being done with [the] SR 365 Planning Study. It has started with the inland port located in Hall County, but the study will expand to incorporate the entire corridor – all counties, including Habersham,” says Johnson.
This week’s meeting with Habersham’s local and state elected officials could be the first step in getting that study started.
Top priority
Expressing their deep condolences to the families impacted by Sunday’s fatal wreck, lawmakers say they’re committed to doing everything in their power to prevent such tragedies from happening in the future.
“The safety of this community is our top priority,” says Sen. Hatchett, speaking on behalf of the local delegation. “We urge the community to come together during this difficult time, supporting one another and working to collaboratively find viable solutions that enhance safety along GA 365.”
