Speed limit reduced on this major Columbus road connecting Muscogee and Harris counties

The speed limit on a busy section of a major road in the Columbus area has been reduced.

The speed limit on the 7.5-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 27/GA Route 1 (also called Veterans Parkway) from Turnberry Lane in Muscogee County to GA Route 315 in Harris County dropped from 55 mph to 45 mph Monday.

The Georgia Department of Transportation explained in a news release the speed limit was decreased because of traffic concerns through the work zone in a road widening and reconstruction project adding passing lanes on the corridor. The project started in August 2023 and is expected to be completed in the spring of 2027.

“Construction and utility crews are active in locations throughout the length of the project, often in close proximity to traffic,” GDOT communications officer Penny Brooks said in the news release.

More than 1,200 vehicles travel along that corridor during commuter drive times weekdays mornings and later afternoons, according to GDOT.

“When traveling through the project work zone,” Brooks said, “drivers are urged to follow the new, lower speed limit, and also to remain alert to the workers and their vehicles along the roadway.”

In 2023, GDOT tallied 13,689 crashes in roadway construction and maintenance work zones, which resulted in 4,891 injuries and 62 fatalities.

“The top three causes of the fatal crashes were driving too fast for conditions, driving distracted and driving while impaired,” Brooks said.

Although the contractor hasn’t reported any accidents along that stretch during this project, Brooks told the Ledger-Enquirer, “they’ve had some near misses. … They’ve seen a lot of people speeding through there, people who are kind of distracted and then zoom real close.”

The project’s budget is $40 million, she said, funded by a combination of state money and the Columbus regional Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax.