By Fred Guarino
The Lowndes Signal

Lowndes County residents in the Mosses area will see resurfacing on County Roads 2 and 13 this year, according to County Engineer David Butts, and County Commissioner Carnell McAlpine said he is ecstatic.

Butts said Lowndes County is in line to have five Rural Assistance Match Program (RAMP) road projects, which are 100 percent grant funded and two Alabama Transportation Rehabilitation and Improvement Program (ATRIP) road projects, which require 20 percent matching funds, done by 2014.

All of those are surfacing projects, he said.

However, Butts said, two Federal Aid Projects to resurface Lowndes County Roads 2 and 13 in Lowndes County Commissioner McAlpine’s District (2) are “on schedule to be let (or bid out) in August. Therefore construction should start by September or October 2013.”

According to information provided by Butts, Lowndes County Road 2 will be resurfaced from Lowndes County Road 17 to Main Street in Mosses for a distance of four miles and a cost of $490,260.92.  County Road 13 will be resurfaced from Main Street to Alabama Highway 21 for a distance of 3.5 miles at a cost of $428,978.31.

The Federal Aid projects also require a 20 percent local match, according to Butts. However, county officials say the funds are available.

“I’m really ecstatic about it,” McAlpine said. “I’ve been here in the Lowndes County area for about 31 years and they (CR 2 and CR 13) basically have been in the same condition as they are now.”

He said he was looking forward to the roads being resurfaced and upgraded because there have been quite a few people complaining about potholes bending rims and bursting tires.

“I think this is going to eliminate a lot of that and I welcome it,” he said.

He said it is his understanding the matching 20 percent funds are in the budget and available for the Federal Aid Project, which Commission Administrator Jackie Thomas confirmed Wednesday.

Butts said everything has been submitted for the RAMP Program projects and has been accepted, but those road are in what he called the “process” and said, “We are looking at 2014 before they are actually paved.”

The RAMP Projects include

Lowndes County Road 45 from Alabama 185 to Alabama 21 in Commissioners Brenson Crenshaw’s and Joseph Barganier’s Districts 3 and 4 for a distance of 9.27 miles and a cost of $1,136,179.71.

Blue Hill Road from Alabama 21 to Lowndes County Road 12 in McAlpine’s and Crenshaw’s Districts 2 and 3 for a distance of 6.13 miles at a cost of $751,052.54.

Lowndes County Road 26 from Lowndes County Road 6 to Montgomery County in Barganier’s District 4 for a distance of 3.34 miles at a cost of $409,483.50.

Lowndes County Road 33 from Lowndes County Road 37 to Alabama 21 in Crenshaw’s District 3 for a distance of 8.52 miles and a cost of $1,045,093.09.

Lowndes County Road 37 from Alabama 97 to Alabama 185 in Crenshaw’s, Barganier’s and Dixon Farrior’s Districts 3,4 and 5 for a distance of 12.61 miles at a cost of $1,545,732.87.

The ATRIP Project are 20 percent matched and include County Road 37 from U.S. 80 to Lowndes County 54 in Commission Chairman Robert Harris’ District for a distance of 4.11 miles and a cost of $504,212, and County Road 12 to Alabama 21 in McAlpine’s District 2 for a distance of 5.99 miles at a cost of $734,165.73 miles.

According to the office of Governor Robert Bentley, under RAMP, counties and cities are eligible to receive up to $1 million in state funds to match an additional $4 million in federal funds.  RAMP allows the Alabama Department of Transportation to sell bonds to provide the local match to participating counties and cities.