East Cobb Traffic & Roads

Richardson to hold transportation forum in East Cobb

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Richardson East Cobb transportation forum

A few weeks after Cobb commissioners were briefed on options for a proposed Cobb mobility sales tax, one of East Cobb’s representatives will have a forum on transportation issues.

District 2 commissioner Jerica Richardson is holding a forum next Thursday from 5:30-8 p.m. at Fullers Recreation Center (3499 Robinson Road) that’s free and open to the public.

Cobb DOT will present recommended options (info sheet here) and provide an overview the proposed Cobb Mobility SPLOST, or special-purpose local-option sales tax, as well as existing transit services, technology, current and upcoming projects.

It’s touted as the “Future of Mobility,” but the focus figures to be on a proposed 2024 SLPOST referendum that commissioners have yet to vote on setting.

It’s tentatively set for November 2024 after being delayed last year.

At an Aug. 22 commission meeting, Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler laid out two sales tax options, one for 10 years that would collect $2.8 billion and a 30-year tax that would collect $10.9 billion.

(You can read through the full presentation by clicking here.)

Commissioners were divided on the issue, with Republican JoAnn Birrell of District 3 in East Cobb saying she wouldn’t support a tax longer than five years.

Richardson, a first-term Democrat who announced last week the launch of her 6th Congressional District campaign, hasn’t stated a preference for the length of a tax.

A number of the transit projects in the Cobb DOT Mobility SPLOST presentation include expanded and “high capacity” bus service.

One of the few in East Cobb is a 6.6-mile line that would run along Roswell Road from the proposed Marietta Transit Center near the Big Chicken to Johnson Ferry Road, with a projected cost between $125-$150 million,

That’s a similar route that was previously operated by Cobb Community Transit (now CobbLinc), but that was discontinued by commissioners during the recession. It had some of the lowest ridership numbers in the system.

To register for the transportation forum, click here.

For information contact Megan at megan.postell@cobbcounty.org.

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Conservative group opposed to Cobb transit tax referendum

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A Cobb County political organization with ties to the Tea Party is urging the Cobb Board of Commissioners to vote against holding a transit tax referendum in 2024.Franklin Roundtable, Conversative group opposed to Cobb transit tax referendum

The Franklin Roundtable, which labels itself “a non-partisan advocacy group based in Marietta,” said its board of directors has voted unanimously to oppose the proposed tax.

Cobb commissioners are expected to decide later this whether to call for a transit tax referendum after voting along party-lines in March to hire a consultant to plan for such a referendum.

Jim Jess, chairman of Franklin Roundtable, said in release that “the transit tax is nothing but a boondoggle. We need serious traffic solutions. But what do we get from our commissioners? Empty buses on Cobb County streets. Multimillion dollar transportation studies that make consultants rich. And transit proposals that won’t improve traffic flow. Who is being served by this? It’s certainly not the citizens of Cobb County.”

The three Democrats on the board voted to hire the consultant, Kimley-Horn & Associates, to prepare for what’s being called the Cobb Mobility SPLOST.

It’s a one-percent, special-purpose local-option sales tax that Democratic Chairwoman Lisa Cupid has proposed to be collected for 30 years for a variety of transportation purposes, including mass transit as well as traditional transportation options, including resurfacing.

The two Republicans voted against hiring the consultant, and have said they’re opposed to such a long tax-collection period.

GOP commissioner JoAnn Birrell of East Cobb has publicly supported a five-year tax for road transportation projects.

The Franklin Roundtable, named after Benjamin Franklin, is a non-profit that supports limited government, free markets and fiscal responsibility. Its website states that since 2018, it has been the “official public name” of the Georgia Tea Party Inc.

“Most of our current commissioners are not serious about real traffic solutions, and they are not fiscally responsible,” Jess said. “They are more concerned about serving the economic development lobby and the consultant lobby. County spending reflects this year after year.”

Much of the group’s statement focused on mass transit, which it called “an idea best left in the previous century.”

Instead, the Franklin Roundtable suggested in one example that the county contract with Uber or Lyft to help those needing transportation to work.

The group also suggested building flyover lanes or access roads to bypass busy intersections, and the purchase of vans that are “smaller and can move through traffic more quickly” than more expensive buses.

Jess said that “solutions like the ones we are talking about are simply common sense. We need our commissioners to make some better decisions, beginning with dropping the idea of a transit tax. It really doesn’t make sense for our situation in Cobb County.”

The Franklin Roundtable release said that should there be a referendum, it will work with “a coalition of likeminded citizens and organizations to defeat this wasteful, ineffective and unnecessary tax.”

Cobb DOT officials told commissioners in March that part of the consultant’s work was to conduct further outreach, following an objection to a 30-year tax from the mayor of Cobb’s cities.

Cobb DOT has not yet released a detailed project list of what might be used with tax revenues.

Department head Drew Raessler said this spring more input is being is being sought from citizens and in cities and community improvement projects to hear “what type of projects they would like to see.”

He has said that more transit solutions need to be provided to Cobb citizens so the county can continue to grow economically.

Cupid said at the same March meeting to hire the consultant that “I think we have a significant opportunity to invest in our future, at least just to ask the citizens the questions, to flesh out with the mayors what the options are.”

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Portion of Powers Ferry Road closed due to water main break

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Powers Ferry Road closed

Cobb DOT said Wednesday morning that Powers Ferry Road is closed between Delk Road and Terrell Mill Road due to a water main break.

Alternates include Bentley Road and “Delk and Terrell Mill Roads to where they intersect east of the problem area,” DOT said.

Cobb government spokesman Ross Cavitt said that Cobb DOT has brought a contractor to the scene but “we don’t know how long this closure will last.”

A Cobb Commute update indicates the work could take the rest of the day, showing an estimated completion time of 6 p.m.

Cavitt said 26 businesses in the area were without water but that service was restored before 9 a.m.

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Cobb to consider Walton HS sports complex sidewalk project

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Walton HS sports complex pedestrian bridge
The proposed sidewalk covers 0.1 mile on Bill Murdock Road across from the Walton HS campus.

Funding for a sidewalk connecting the Walton High School campus with a new sports complex for the school will be requested Tuesday by Cobb DOT.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners will be asked to spend $720,897 for the one-tenth of a mile sidewalk along the southern side of Bill Murdock Road, between Old College Way and Pine Road (see map below).

In an agenda item for Tuesday night’s meeting (you can read it here), Cobb DOT said $359,762 would come from the 2022 Cobb SPLOST School Zone Improvements component. Another $384,762 in Cobb DOT water system funding would be needed to relocate water lines.

The low bidder was Advanced Sports Construction, LLC of Woodstock.Walton HS sidewalk project

The sidewalk would extend to a $1 million pedestrian bridge that the Cobb Board of Education approved in April to the sports complex, traversing a creek located in a flood plain area near the Bill Murdock-Pine Road intersection.

The sports complex is located on property on Pine Road and Providence Road that the Cobb County School District has purchased to construct a $6.738 million sports complex, housing the Walton varsity tennis and baseball teams.

Walton’s tennis teams played home matches there this spring, but the baseball portion of the complex is still under construction.

Safe access to the complex from the school campus to the complex, which will have 80 parking spaces, is necessary for practices as well as competitions.

The Cobb school district tried to get Cobb DOT to increase pedestrian crosswalks, but to no avail. Cobb DOT also was looking at realigning Bill Murdock Road and Pine Road to straighten out a curve near the intersection, but that also will not be happening.

Traffic at the intersection is regulated by a three-way stop sign.

The Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday will take place starting at 7 p.m. in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta).

On the agenda will be a recognition of two students at Hightower Trail Middle School and another at Dickerson Middle School who have attained the Girl Scout Silver Award.

Another agenda item includes confirming the appointment of Georgia Bureau of Investigation director Michael Register as Cobb Public Safety Director. Register would be returning to a position he briefly held in 2018-19.

You can read through the full agenda by clicking here.

The meeting will be live-streamed on the county’s website, cable TV channel (Channel 24 on Comcast) and Youtube page. Visit cobbcounty.org/CobbTV for other streaming options.

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Johnson Ferry-Shallowford design contract to be considered

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Johnson Ferry-Shallowford design contract

The first phase of one of several major traffic improvements in the East Cobb area under the 2022 Cobb SPLOST goes before Cobb commissioners Tuesday.

A $495,292 engineering design contract to improve the Johnson Ferry Road-Shallowford Road intersection is on the agenda for a regular meeting of the Cobb Board of Commissioners Tuesday morning (agenda item here).

Cobb DOT is recommending that the work go to Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. of Atlanta, and the agenda item states the work includes the following details:

“The project will evaluate the need for intersection improvements to address operations and vehicular safety. The improvements may include, but are not limited to, addition of travel and turn lanes, and pedestrian improvements. The scope of services for the design-build delivery will include a traffic study, concept development, environmental document, preliminary design, and design services throughout construction of the project.”

Improvements at that busy intersection have been anticipated for several years, especially with the coming redevelopment of the southwest quadrant with East Cobb Church, retail shops and a single-family subdivision.

It’s one of several road projects in the 2022 Cobb SPLOST (Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax) that will be funded mostly with federal revenues.

Cobb government spokesman Ross Cavitt said in response to information requested by East Cobb News that the total budget of the Johnson Ferry-Shallowford project is $7.75 million, with $5 million in federal funding. Commissioners would have to approve funding for the local match in a separate vote, after the design work is finished.

Two other major projects in the East Cobb area also will have substantial federal funding. Improvements at the Roswell Road-Johnson Ferry Road intersection are projected to cost $15 million, with $10 million from the feds and and $5 million from the Cobb SPLOST.

Likewise, the widening of Roswell Road—one of the most expensive projects in the 2022 SPLOST at $60 million—will get $48 million from the federal government and $12 million locally.

There aren’t timetables for those projects (see full project list here).

The 2022 SPLOST was approved by Cobb voters in 2020, and is expected to collect $810 million from Jan. 1, 2022 through Dec. 31, 2027.

Of that total, $361 million has been earmarked for road and traffic projects, including $227 million for repavings, along with bridge repairs, traffic management and sidewalk upgrades.

Also on Tuesday, commissioners will be asked to spend $8.132 million to purchase two vacant office buildings in an industrial park. The buildings are on 10 acres on West Oak Circle and West Oak Parkway and include 85,000 square feet. They would house official documents that are required for the Cobb County Records Services Division to retain and archive.

The agenda item states that various records are held in a number of facilities around the county and are at capacity: “This purchase of the two office buildings will allow the County to consolidate storage of records. In addition, the purchase will allow for storage of records in a climate-controlled environment, necessary for preservation of vital records.”

Once purchased, the buildings would need to be renovated at a cost of $1.362 million, pushing the total cost to $9.5 million. The Cobb Support Services Agency is recommending the funding come from the county’s reserve.

Another item would update the county’s policies on compensation, education incentive pay, nepotism, anti- harassment and discrimination, parental leave, performance appraisal and discipline. (details here).

The Cobb Board of Commissioners meeting starts at 9 a.m. Tuesday in the second floor board room of the Cobb government building (100 Cherokee St., downtown Marietta). You can read through the full agenda by clicking here.

You also can watch on the county’s website and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.

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East Cobb traffic update: Lane closures on Johnson Ferry Road

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Johnson Ferry Road lane closure

A heads-up if you’re traveling northbound on Johnson Ferry Road today just above Lower Roswell Road:

Work crews have blocked off the two right lanes in front of the Northside medical building due to power line work.

That reduces northbound traffic to one lane, up to Olde Towne Parkway.

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Cobb hires consultants for 2024 transit sales tax referendum

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The three Democrats on the Cobb Board of Commissioners Tuesday voted to spend more than $500,000 to hire three separate consulting firms to help the Cobb Department of Transportation prepare for a transportation sales tax referendum in 2024.Cobb transportation sales tax consultants

The contracts will be for developing project lists and providing planning and engineering services, as well as conducting community outreach.

Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid has proposed a one-percent, 30-year sales tax for transit, but the board’s two Republican members are opposed to anything longer than five years.

What’s been called the Cobb Mobility SPLOST, or M-SPLOST, would fund mass transit services as well as traditional transportation options, including resurfacing.

The county set aside $400,000 for consulting services for the M-SLPOST referendum, but on Tuesday spending that was approved totaled $529,839:

  • WSP USA, Inc., $207,205
  • Kimley-Horn & Assciates, $192,795
  • CDM-Smith, Inc., $129,839

Republican commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Keli Gambrill voted against the contracts, objecting to the long-term nature of the proposed 30-year sales tax.

State law gives local governments that option, and they also could levy a five-year, one-percent tax for surface projects, which Birrell has supported.

While commending Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler and his department for their efforts, Birrell said that “all along I have said I cannot support a 30-year tax.  .  . . Getting anybody to get on the same page up here is a difficult task.”

The county held town halls and other public events in 2021 for a sales tax referendum targeted for 2022, but put that on hold when mayors of Cobb’s cities objected to a 30-year tax.

Gambrill asked Raessler why more outreach was necessary, and he said that it would be more targeted, especially to those in cities and community improvement districts to hear “what type of projects they would like to see.”

Cupid said that “I think we have a significant opportunity to invest in our future, at least just to ask the citizens the questions, to flesh out with the mayors what the options are.

“This isn’t a done deal yet. But hopefully we’ll get the data to support where we could potentially go, with additional help fleshing out what the [project] lists are.”

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Cobb approves design contract for Holly Springs Road project

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Holly Springs road traffic project
The intersection of Holly Springs Road and Post Oak Tritt Road.

The Cobb Board of Commissioners Tuesday approved the hiring of a traffic engineering firm to start an improvement project in the Holly Springs Road corridor.

The board voted unanimously(5-0) to spend $166,100 for Southeastern Engineering, Inc. to conduct a traffic study, develop a plan concept and involve public feedback.

The funding comes from the 2022 Cobb SPLOST, as will the $3.3 million for the project, which will make improvements on Holly Springs between Old Canton Road and Sandy Plains Road.

A contract for construction would come to commissioners after the design is completed.

The Holly Springs project been prioritized as a “Tier 1” road project in the 2022 SPLOST, which was approved by voters in a 2020 referendum.

In 2021, Cobb DOT completed a nearly $1 million project to make improvements at the Holly Springs-Old Canton intersection, including the construction of pedestrian refuge islands, a guardrail, signage and striping at a three-way intersection.

The initial plans for the 2022 SPLOST project were to make improvements at the Holly Springs-Post Oak Tritt Road intersection.

But an agenda item for Tuesday’s meeting said SPLOST funds “will be used to make operational and safety improvements at intersections and corridors throughout the county.”

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East Cobb traffic update: Johnson Ferry lane closures at Woodlawn

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Johnson Ferry lane closures
Georgia 511 camera photo

If you travel northbound on Johnson Ferry Road at Woodlawn Drive, you might want to take another route for the time being.

Work crews have closed off the two left northbound lanes at that intersection, reducing traffic in that direction to one lane.

It’s causing a backup that extends to Little Willeo Road near Johnson Ferry Baptist Church.

We’re trying to find out more about how long the closures will remain in place.

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Sinkhole closes sidewalk, shoulder on East Piedmont Road

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East Piedmont Road sinkhole
Open Street Map

Cobb DOT has closed off a portion of a sidewalk and a shoulder on southbound East Piedmont Road due to a sinkhole.

Cobb government sent a message Monday evening that no traffic lanes have thus far been affected, but that work crews will be monitoring the site this week due to rainy weather in the forecast.

The sinkhole is located in front of the Sprayberry Square Shopping Center, just south of the intersection of Sandy Plains Road.

The problem was caused by a failed joint in a drainage pipe, and the Cobb message said repairs will start when the rain moves out.

There’s a 100 percent chance of rain Tuesday afternoon, followed by a 40 percent chance of rain Wednesday and a 100 percent chance again on Thursday before sunny weather returns later this week.

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Cobb DOT to request funding for Lower Roswell redesign work

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Lower Roswell Road project redesign
A proposed raised median would prevent left-turn traffic coming out of Parkaire Landing to Lower Roswell Road in a high-accident area.

Back in October we reported on Cobb DOT’s plans to have parts of the Lower Roswell Road project redesigned after a good deal of community feedback, including at a robust town hall meeting.

At that town hall, organized by Commissioner Jerica Richarsdon, Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler said the bike lanes would be taken out in favor of a wider multi-use trail, among other things.

On Tuesday, he’ll be asking the Cobb Board of Commissioners for $192,810 for new engineering design work to reflect those changes.

The additional redesign work is expected to take 6-8 months. A major transportation program that has been nearly a decade in the works will be delayed yet again, with a tentative completion timeframe—barring any other setbacks—for 2026. 

The agenda item can be found by clicking here; some of the other suggestions and complaints expressed at that town hall at the East Cobb Library aren’t included, including continuing concerns over a proposed median along Lower Roswell between Johnson Ferry Road and Davidson Road. 

The commission meeting will take place in the second floor board room of the Cobb Government Building, 100 Cherokee St., in downtown Marietta.

The full agenda packet can be viewed by clicking here.

You also can watch on the county’s website, Facebook Live and YouTube channels and on Cobb TV 23 on Comcast Cable.

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East Cobb traffic alert: Lower Roswell Road crash blocks lanes

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Lower Roswell Road crash
Georgia 511 screenshot.

Cobb Police are asking motorists to find an alternate route along a busy portion of Lower Roswell Road Tuesday afternoon.

A crash on Lower Roswell eastbound near Fairfield Drive has blocked two lanes of traffic in a congested area at the East Cobb Government Service Center and Mt. Bethel Church.

Police said in a social media posting that traffic is getting by, but there are delays and “please use an alternate route.”

Early voting continues at the East Cobb government center until 7 p.m., and the parking lot was nearly full when we went by earlier Tuesday afternoon. There was a backup of traffic trying to access the entrance at Lower Roswell and Fairfield.

UPDATED, 5:15 P.M.: Cobb Police are reporting that all lanes of traffic are open.

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Cobb DOT to propose redesign for Lower Roswell Road project

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Lower Roswell Road project redesign

The long-delayed start to the Lower Roswell Road traffic project could be pushed back further after Cobb DOT officials said Thursday they’ll be proposing a redesign for part of the project.

During a community meeting at the East Cobb Library organized by Commissioner Jerica Richardson, Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler said budget issues and public feedback have prompted a number of possible changes.

The $9 million project, first proposed more than a decade ago, would add turn lanes and enhance traffic flow along Lower Roswell between Woodlawn Drive and Davidson Road, and in particular at the intersection with Johnson Ferry Road.

The objective has been to improve safety in an area with a high number of crashes.

But Raessler said at a meeting attended by a few dozen citizens that all of the construction bidders came in over budget—the lowest bidder was $1.9 million over.

Lingering issues over access along a portion of the project also are being considered.

“We’re going to go back and do a small redesign to bring the scope to budget,” said Raessler, adding that he is planning to ask commissioners for funding for a redesign in November.

Lower Roswell Road project redesign
Drew Raessler, Cobb DOT director

The main redesign changes would include removing a planned bike path and expanding a multi-use trail to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists.

The multi-use trail would be eight feet wide, but Raessler said the expansion could be “as wide as we can get it.”

Those changes have come about only in the last couple of weeks and are not yet reflected on the project’s fact sheet.

After commissioners approved the project’s conceptual plan last year, DOT had set a construction timetable to start this year and finish in 2023.

But Raessler and Karyn Matthews, a DOT transportation engineer who covers the East Cobb area, said the redesign work is expected to take 6-8 months. He estimated that the work could start in the first quarter of 2024 and be completed by early 2026.

Until recent months, little public opposition had been expressed. Most of the concerns came from business owners worried about traffic access that would be limited with a raised median on Lower Roswell between Davidson and Johnson Ferry.

Cobb DOT has proposed one left-turn lane in either direction, but that didn’t quell some of the citizens in attendance.

Some worried that traffic that now comes out of Parkaire Landing to turn left on Lower Roswell westbound would cause backlogs on Davidson Road with a median installed.

Lower Roswell Road project redesign
A proposed raised median would prevent left-turn traffic coming out of Parkaire Landing to Lower Roswell Road in a high-accident area.

One citizen wondered if a roundabout could be built there, saying that “you’re trying to retrofit something and a lot of it is unsolvable.”

When he suggested that that portion of the project be put on hold, Raessler said safety concerns have to be addressed.

Between 2016-2018, Cobb DOT said 61 crashes were recorded along the project route, 49 of them between Johnson Ferry and Davidson, primarily due to more than a dozen curb cuts.

That doesn’t include crashes in the Johnson Ferry-Lower Roswell intersection.

“There is a safety problem there,” he said.

Raessler said the median would be landscaped to add to a “sense of place,” providing some greenery and reducing the amount of impervious surface.

Some have asked the county to ditch the project altogether, wondering about trail access for a project deemed necessary for safety reasons.

“We’re not a pedestrian culture, we’re not a biking culture,” a resident said. “This is laden with so many hangups.”

Another component of the project is a passive green space area at the southeast corner of Lower Roswell and Woodlawn, where the Frasier house once stood.

Matthews said Cobb Parks and Recreation will soon be requesting funding to begin design work.

Larry Savage, a former Cobb Commission Chairman candidate has been a critic of the project’s trails component, said after the meeting that doing a redesign is a good step.

“But there are still a lot of conflicting goals,” he said. “They want to make it safer but then they’re going to reduce the speed limit for pedestrians and cyclists and that’s going to affect traffic flow.”

Lower Roswell Road project
For a larger version of the project route, click here.

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Public meeting scheduled for Lower Roswell Road project

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Lower Roswell Project public meeting
Cobb DOT has revised a proposed raised median on Lower Roswell Road between Johnson Ferry Road and Davidson Road to include left-turn lanes in either direction.

Cobb Commissioner Jerica Richardson said Friday she’s holding a public meeting next week to discuss the planned Lower Roswell Road improvement project.

The meeting is Thursday from 6-7 in the community meeting room at the East Cobb Library (4880 Lower Roswell Road, Suite 510-B), in the Parkaire Landing Shopping Center.

The meeting is a follow-up to a virtual meeting held in June following comments from some East Cobb residents questioning the need for the project.

Cobb DOT initially proposed a variety of improvements along Lower Roswell between Woodlawn Drive and Davidson Road that cost $9 million and have been earmarked in Cobb government’s 2011 Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax (SPLOST).

But the project has been delayed for years due to acquiring right-of-way and concerns from business owners about a raised median along Lower Roswell between Johnson Ferry Road and Davidson Road.

During the June virtual meeting, Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler said the raised median has been revised to include left-turn lanes in either direction, to the McDonald’s heading eastbound and into Parkaire Landing from westbound lanes.

(You can watch a replay of that meeting by clicking here).

Lower Roswell project public meeting
Cobb DOT markings where crashes commonly occur on Lower Roswell Road near the Parkaire Landing entrance.

Raessler said the raised median is necessary to reduce the number of crashes along that strip of Lower Roswell. He said data collected between 2015-2017 showed the number of crashes was four and a half times the statewide average and that a raised median would reduce crashes by. more than 50 percent.

He said the crash totals have been so high because there are 14 separate access points along Lower Roswell in that area.

Raessler said Cobb DOT continues to work with local business owners to purchase final parcels of right-of-way and to improve their access and visibility.

He noted that his office is negotiating with Tijuana Joe’s, a popular restaurant on the southeast corner of Johnson Ferry and Lower Roswell, to keep its “iconic” sign that can be seen in all directions.

Right-of-way considerations may require having the sign to be relocated on a small property with “a driveway that’s difficult to get into even now.”

If you’re interested in attending Thursday’s meeting, please RSVP with Richardson’s office by clicking here.

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East Cobb traffic update: Wheeler, Walton homecoming parades

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Wheeler, Walton homecoming traffic
A float and participants at Walton’s 2021 homecoming parade. Photo courtesy of Amanda Brown

Two high schools in East Cobb are having homecoming parades this week that will affect traffic in some areas.

On Wednesday, a portion of Holt Road will be closed from 6-7 p.m. for the Wheeler homecoming parade.

The route starts at Grace Marietta Church (675 Holt Road) and heads south to the school (375 Holt Road) and the student parking lot behind the football stadium.

That’s where a festival will be taking place until 8 p.m. There will be food, games and other activities that are open to the public.

On Friday, the Walton homecoming parade takes place, starting at the Target store at Merchants Festival at 2:15 p.m. The route continues westbound on Providence Road, then to Pine Road and Bill Murdock Road before arriving at the school (1590 Bill Murdock Road).

The class councils for each grade will compete for best float, and the Walton band will lead the athletic floats and homecoming court in the parade.

Both football teams are battling for playoff berths in the Georgia High School Association’s Class 7A Region 5.

Wheeler is 4-3 and will be playing Osborne, which is 5-2. Walton is 5-2 and will be playing host to Cherokee.

Kickoff times for both games are 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Walton 2022 homecoming parade map

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Windy Hill-Terrell Mill connector opens to traffic on Friday

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Windy Hill-Terrell Mill connector opens
Starting Friday morning, commuters can begin using the Windy Hill-Terrell Mill connector.

It’s less than a mile, but is expected to alleviate traffic in a busy corridor of East Cobb along Interstate 75 and the Northwest Express Lanes.

Local dignitaries, including elected officials, county transportation and development leaders and civic participants took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday afternoon.

The four-lane connector costs $45.8 million, with nearly $30 million coming from the 2016 Cobb SPLOST (special local-option sales tax) and the rest from Georgia Department of Transportation and the Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority.

The connector is accessible on Windy Hill Road by the Spectrum Circle/Interstate North Parkway and moves northbound to Terrell Mill, ending at the intersection of Bentley Road.

The road also features a multi-use trail on the west shoulder that connects to the Bob Callan Trail system, which ultimately hooks up with the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area trails.

Among those on hand for the ribbon cutting were Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid, former Commissioner Bob Ott, Cobb County Manager Jackie McMorris, Cobb DOT director Drew Raessler, Cumberland Community Improvement District executive director Kim Menefee and Powers Ferry Corridor Alliance president Patti Rice.

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Ribbon-cutting scheduled for Windy Hill-Terrell Mill Connector

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The Cobb Department of Transportation will be holding a ribbon-cutting event next Thursday, Oct. 13 for the newly completed Windy Hill-Terrell Mill Connector.Windy Hill-Terrell Mill Connector ribbon cutting

The event takes place at 11 a.m., and you’re asked to do two things—park at 1950 Spectrum Circle and take a shuttle to the venue, and wear comfortable shoes.

Construction has been underway for the last three years on the $45.7 million, 0.7-mile project, which was built with 2016 Cobb SPLOST funds as an alternate route from Windy Hill Road to access the I-75 Northwest Corridor Express Lanes.

The four-lane connector stretches from the intersection of Windy Hill Road and Spectrum Circle, and continues north to the intersection of Terrell Mill Road and Bentley Road. The connector also has a raised center median that includes a sidewalk and multi-use trail.

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East Cobb Traffic Update: Powers Ferry Road closed between Delk, Terrell Mill

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Powers Ferry Road
Source: OpenStreet Map

From Marietta Police at 5:24 p.m.:

“AVOID Power Ferry Road between Terrell Mill & Delk Road. An accident has that entire area closed.”

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Electric vehicle charging stations installed at Parkaire Landing

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Parkaire Landing electric vehicle charging stations

A handful of public electric vehicle charging stations in East Cobb are primarily centered along Johnson Ferry Road.

The latest are at Parkaire Landing Shopping Center, where two free Volta charging stations have been installed in the corner of the parking lot closest to the East Cobb Library.

They provide a Level 2 charge, delivering 6.2 to 19.2 kilowatts, requiring a 208-240 Volt, 40 Amp circuit.

According to Evocharge, an EV charging station manufacturer, a Level 2 charge typically provides 32 miles of driving range per hour of charge, and takes an estimated 6-8 hours to fully charge.

Most electric vehicles are equipped with a Level 1 charge that provides a 1.2 kilowatt charge using a common household 120-volt circuit and provides typically four hours of driving range per hour of charge. The estimated time for a full charge is 11-20 hours.

Based in San Francisco, Volta has nearly 3,000 free EV charging stations across the country, including nearly 200 in metro Atlanta. Volta also has installed six chargers at Six Flags Whitewater and four at Town Center at Cobb.

Other EV charging stations in East Cobb charge customers to use their stations.

SemaConnect has installed two Level 2 stations at Woodlawn Point Shopping Center (1100 Johnson Ferry Road) that costs $1.50 an hour.

The same cost applies for two Level 2 chargers at the Koala Express Shell Station (1280 Johnson Ferry Road).

At Merchants Walk (1311 Johnson Ferry Road), there are two ChargePoint Level 2 chargers at the front entrance to the Kohl’s department store. The cost is $1.25 an hour.

The AAA Car Care Plus at 1197 Johnson Ferry Road has two EVGo Level 3 chargers. Those are considered the fastest chargers. An EVGo membership is required, and there are various levels of charging rates available.

Charge Hub, which helps EV drivers find charging stations, has created an interactive map. Other East Cobb-area EV stations include the Walgreens at 2975 Delk Road, the Franklin Gateway Sports Complex and GE Complex at Wildwood Office Park.

EV owners are encouraged to check with each charging station provider for availability, pricing and reservations before heading to the pumps.

More information can also be found at Drive Electric Georgia and Kelley Blue Book.

According to Axios, an estimated 30,000 electric vehicles are registered in Georgia, around three percent of all vehicles, and that number has grown rapidly.

Rivian, an electric truck manufacturer based in California, is building a $5 billion plant in Morgan and Walton counties in Georgia. It’s expected to open in 2024, and is aiming to produce 400,000 vehicles a year there and employ more than 7,500 people.

Rivian, which received more than $1.5 billion in state tax incentives in the largest industrial project in Georgia, has drawn opposition for environmental reasons, and from locals who don’t want their rural way of life to be affected.

California recently became the first state in the country to ban the production of gasoline-fueled vehicles, by 2035, and other states could follow suit.

Georgia is not among those states that have tied state laws to federal vehicle emissions standards.

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East Cobb Traffic Alert: Gordy Parkway closed for drainage repairs

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Gordy Parkway closed drainage repairs

A portion of Gordy Parkway near a busy traffic area of Northeast Cobb was closed Monday afternoon for drainage repairs.

Cobb County government said Monday afternoon that Gordy Parkway is closed between Shallowford Road and Edenbourgh Place, right behind the Home Depot store at the Highland Plaza Shopping Center.

The closures are in both directions and there is no through-traffic on Gordy Parkway, but streets surrounding the closure are open via a temporary detour.

The Cobb government message said work crews were repairing an 84-foot drainage pipe  and was unsure how long the closures would last.

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