(Lawrenceville, Ga., Nov. 6, 2017) – Gwinnett County Commissioners in October approved a construction contract to widen State Route 20/Buford Drive that is jointly funded by the city of Buford, the Georgia Department of Transportation and Gwinnett County.

The commissioners approved a $5.5 million contract with C.W. Matthews Contracting Co. Inc., to widen State Route 20 from South Lee Street to State Route 13/Buford Highway. SR 20 will be widened from two to three lanes on both directions with the installation of a raised concrete median and sidewalks. The SR 20 widening project will also include intersection traffic signal upgrades along with drainage improvements, including curb and gutter.

C.W. Matthews will also install sidewalks along the west side of Old Suwanee Road from SR 13 to Chatham Road as part of this contract. The Old Suwanee Road improvements include drainage improvements, along with curb and gutter.

Part of the funding for the SR 20 project comes from a $1 million Local Maintenance and Improvement Grant from the Georgia DOT; that is in addition to the $450,000 LMIG funding previously approved by Georgia DOT. Commissioners also voted to apply for and accept the additional LMIG funds.

Additional funding for the project is provided through SPLOST contributions by Gwinnett County and the city of Buford. County commissioners voted to approve an intergovernmental agreement with the city, which provided funding for the SR 20 widening contract, with additional funds identified to widen Thompson Mill Road from SR 13/Buford Highway to Brickton North Drive. This project is currently in the concept phase.

These projects, which are located in commission districts 1 and 4, will be managed by the County. Funding for the County’s share comes from the 2009, 2014 and 2017 SPLOST Programs.