ATLANTA — The Georgia Department of Transportation is launching a three-year private road maintenance contract for Interstate 95 along the coast.
The $6.8 million contract with Maryland-based Roy Jorgensen Associates Inc. begins Friday.
The Georgia DOT just finished widening I-95 to three lanes in each direction at a cost of $1 billion.
DOT Commissioner Vance Smith says the state Legislature and transportation board have encouraged the department to try out privatization. He called the busy 113-mile stretch of I-95 "a perfect location."
The arrangement could save the state money and free up state employees for other work.
The company's duties will include litter and roadway debris removal, mowing, guardrail repair, routine bridge repair, pothole repair and tree trimming.