Members of the North Bryan Chamber of Commerce learned a little of what is going on in the Georgia Department of Transportation whenGeorgia’s 1stCongressional District Board Member Ann Purcell paid the group a visit on May 15.

Purcell, a former state representative and native of Glennville, won the seat on the board back in February. She told the group she was pleased to be able to represent this region ofGeorgiaon the GDOT state transportation board.

“I am glad to be your spokesperson on the DOT board for the state ofGeorgiaand I’m glad to represent the first congressional district which entails 15 whole counties and two split counties,” Purcell told the group. “So we have a large district and we have a lot of needs down here and our needs are no different from any of the other 13 congressional districts because their needs are important too.”

Purcell informed the group of alternatives the DOT is working on for regions of the state that did not pass the TIA—or Transportation Investment Act.

“We tried but we just didn’t sell it well enough and maybe some of that was because of mistrust in our transportation department, maybe that was because citizens didn’t understand exactly what was going on,” Purcell said. “But let me tell you one thing, we did miss a good opportunity by not passing the TIA, but we’ve got to accept that and we’ve got to move forward.”

While there is no real “Plan B,” she said, the state is looking at several options for projects to ease traffic congestion when it comes to getting the “biggest bang for the dollar.”

One option is a diamond interchange, Purcell said, similar to larger interchanges inAtlanta. Another option, she said, is using roundabouts in the coastal region.

Read full story in May 15 issue of the Bryan County News.