Bryan County is home to approximately 217 miles of paved roads and 107 miles of dirt roads. In the 2035 transportation plan there are 7 road widening projects happening in Bryan County:
• I-95 Widening - I-16 to SR 144 SR 144 Widening –Timber
• Trail to Belfast Keller US 17/SR 25 Widening - SR 196 to I-95
• Harris Trail Road Widening: Phase 2 - Port Royal Road to Belfast Keller Road
• US 280/SR 30 Widening – Interstate
• Centre Belfast Siding Road Widening - US 17 to Park Hill 20
• Road Harris Trail Road Widening: Phase 1 - Timber Trail to Port Royal Road
Travel Trends
I-16 traverses the northern portion of the county and includes an interchange at US 280. I-95 serves the southern portion of the county and includes two interchanges at SR 144 and Ocean Highway (US 17). These interstate connections make the county attractive for commuters to Chatham County and also for freight activities related to the nearby port of Savannah. The county’s truck route network includes:
I-16, I-95, SR-67, SR 119, SR 204, US 280 (SR 30), US, 80 (SR 26), US 17 (SR 25), SR 144.
Bryan County. Roads Division. (n.d.). https://www.bryancountyga. org/government/departments-h-z/public-works/public-worksadministration/road-maintenance-division Georgia Department of Transportation Office of Planning . (n.d.). 2035 Bryan County Transportation Study . https://www.dot. ga.gov/BuildSmart/Studies/Documents/Bryan_County_Study/ BryanCountyTransportationStudy.pdf
Bailey
Port of Savannah
Home to the largest singleterminal container facility of its kind in North America, is comprised of two modern, deepwater terminals: Garden City Terminal and Ocean Terminal. Together, these facilities exemplify the GPA’s exacting standards of efficiency and productivity. Garden City Terminal is the fourth busiest container handling facilities in the United States, encompassing more than 1,200 acres and moving millions of tons of containerized cargo annually.
The port is comprised of three GPA-owned deepwater terminals, two of which are directly operated by the GPA. The port’s well-earned reputation for productivity and efficiency is heightened by its position as one of the fastest growing auto and heavy machinery ports in North America. Today, more than 12 major auto manufacturers, supported by three auto processors, utilize the Colonel’s Island Terminal. The terminal is also home to the South Atlantic’s fastest growing bulk export / import operation. Agri-products from Georgia and the rich U.S. grain belt, as well as import products, flow smoothly across the Colonel’s Island docks.
Our port. Georgia Ports Authority. (2020, January 21). https://gaports.com/our-port/
C U T EVANS OUNTY L BERTY CO NTY
B L O H
F N G H O U N Y LIBERTY COUNTY
CHATH M COUNTY
Ports within the Coastal Region G E N E R A L H G H WAY M A P B R YA N C O U N T Y G E O R G I A O S O O OP R T ON W P 0 4 7 8 M 2
The Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia (CRC) has been dedicated to serving the ten counties and 35 cities of Coastal Georgia. In the updated comprehensive plan, there is a goal to increase or enhance the infrastructure. Within the first few pages of the comprehensive plan, there are the needs and opportunities of improving the regional infrastructure. Some of the needs include - ensuring a safe and stable water supply and to provide a diverse and durable transportation options. The opportunities are to strengthen the cybersecurity resilience and assist the development of the East Coast Greenway.
The goal of the regional commission is to improve the infrastructure. This will be achieved through the efforts of building a comprehensive infrastructure strategy to meet the needs of a modern workforce and the residents of the region. How will the development of the infrastructure help to create more of a workforce helpful region? The goals are to create an efficient and effective transportation network that is critical to regional economic implementation. The map of the entire ten county region shows exactly where the choke points are. These are the ports of Savannah and Brunswick.
The map that I created illustrating the entire region clearly depicts that there are pockets where all of the infrastructure items become very condensed around these fixed nodes (cities). The rest of the region for the most part has some work to do to reach the same level of development. What is striking and how it matches with the comprehensive plan goal of the region of how to increase the connectivity through pipelines can be seen in the countywide map. There was the inclusion of the mobile home parks in the map. This is due to the fact that these parks may/may not be on sewer and other important utilities as the other more traditional homes will be. With this 10 county map, you can clearly see where the important facilities are. Looking at the map, you can see the weak points, like there should be an increase in cell towers throughout the southern and more inland counties. Infrastructure is just an aspect of development. As it looks, the region needs to break away from Savannah and create more nodes.
When looking at the infrastructure of the four counties, there is a disparity between the access Chatham county has to utility lines, and the other three counties. This is because Savannah is the biggest city in this region and requires a lot of resources to keep up with the influx of people coming and going everyday.
The central area of Bulloch county also has access to several utility lines and infrastructure facilities because of the City of Statesboro. Within the limits of the city there are; eight (8) manufacturing facilities, one (1) Solid, Waste, and Landfill facility, one (1) railroad line, two (2) highways, and several power lines. In contrast, the city of Pembroke in Bryan county only has; two (2) manufacturing facilities, one (1) highway, one (1) railroad line, and one (1) power line. There is a limited amount of investment in infrastructure made in this region and it is going to have to rapidly change to meet the demands of the new $5.5 billion Hyundai EV manufacturing facility. As this facility is getting built, rapid development and change is occurring in the surrounding areas in anticipation of capital increasing as a result of this project.
Thus, the county has stressed that their biggest concern is the limited access to sewer, water, and power lines to make sure all the new warehouses, facilities, and even homes have the adequate infrastructure to function, especially on the north side of Bryan County. The county does not make the water and sewer lines readily available, as evidenced by Map 2 below, however in their update comprehensive plan they provide two maps depicting the Service Delivery Strategy boundaries for the Bryan County, Pembroke, and Richmond Hill. The SDS boundaries do not identify existing water and sewer lines but it is still important to identify who is responsible for the geographic areas that may need water and sewer in the future. In this case, for all the
development that is occurring in and around the Hyundai EV manufacturing site, Bryan County is responsible for servicing that area.
There is an opportunity to address this servicing issue in the form of a partnership between two counties: Bryan and Effingham. Much like Bulloch, Effingham county has a decent amount of infrastructure already in place, including; eight (8) manufacturing facilities, six (6) power plants, two (2) railroad lines, and access to multiple power lines and natural gas pipelines. However, there are no major highways or interstates that run through the county, besides a little section in the south-west. The partnership aspect between Effingham and Bryan county comes in the form of access to water and sewer lines. Effingham’s water and sewer is predominantly located in the south of the county, and could potentially be extended to the Bryan county border. This would be a great compliment to the already approved plans to upgrade the infrastructure at the mega site. According to Savannah Morning News, a $37.1 million loan was granted by Bryan County for the water and sewer infrastructure at the Hyundai plant in 2022. The chairman for the Bryan County Board of Commissioners said “The plan, in conjunction with the Savannah Harbor-Interstate 16 Corridor Joint Development Authority, is to pull water from strategically located wells to create a pipeline to the mega-site, while also providing services to select other sites along the way”. An important part of this quote is the acknowledgement that select other sites will be serviced, and if this information is available somewhere, it would make sense to propose a regional design around the areas that are going to be serviced.
• Ensure a safe and stable water supply
• Provide diverse and durable transportation options
• Improve regional transit coordination
• Incorporate hazard mitigation into infrastructure planning
• Strengthen Cybersecurity resilience
• Assist development of the East Coast Greenway
• Connect subdivisions and simplify the roadway network
• Encourage regional watershed management
Overall, the time to improve, extend, and upgrade the infrastructure in North Bryan County is now. The county is growing exponentially and the necessary investments need to be made to keep up with the demand, or else this mega site is not going to be as successful as they would hope.
Location: Commerce, Georgia
This plant was one of the largest single investments in a job creating initiative in Georgia’s history. The engineering and construction firm Clayco was the lead company on the building of this project. What makes this plant rather interesting was that it was almost a disaster... bitter trade dispute. Sk Battery and its competitor LG Energy Solution. After a year of deliberation, the finalized result were that there would be a stalemate and no more suing each other for the next ten years. There would not be a monopoly in battery production. The Sk Battery plant will be able to produce a variety of car batteries now. It is located on 283 acres along I-85 about 65 miles northeast of
Atlanta. The complex is a 2.4 million-square-foot $1.67 billion facility. SK Battery America is the first EV battery factory in the US. This plant will add to the overall population of Jackson County. The plant will add more than 2,000 jobs by 2025. This will be accomplished by the Quick Start Program, which will help to bridge the gap between trade school and learning the specialized skills necessary for these plants. The SK Battery plant has been ahead of schedule in terms of hiring and the overall growth of the area. The goal of hiring 2,600 employees is 2 years ahead of schedule. This plant has also created a new transportation network and road system around the plant.
Sk Battery makes lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and fullyelectric automobiles, builds batteries for multiple vehicle manufacturers, including the Volkswagen in Chattanooga.
• SK Battery America plans to invest a total of $5 billion by 2025 to expand the facility, creating a total of 6,000 high-paying jobs.
• Already exceeding their hiring goal by being two years ahead of schedule
• SK Battery America produces one of the world’s safest, fastest charging and longestlasting batteries, currently installed in the Ford F-150 Lightning and Volkswagen ID.4
• They have stated that with the help of Georgia’s Quick Start program, they have been very successful in attracting and training workers with a speed and scale that would be difficult to do on their own.
Bailey Borkat, Joe Cavanaugh, Aisha IyengarThe Kia Plant of West Point, Georgia is the only KIA manufacturing plant in the United States, and one of the only automakers in Georgia. This plant covers 2,200 acres with a total investment of $1.8 Billion. The establishment of Kia’s facility in Troup County, Georgia has brought about significant impacts on the region’s economy, infrastructure, and workforce. In 2006, the KIA automotive group and the state of Georgia reached an agreement to establish car manufacturing in the western part of the state. For the workforce aspect, Georgia is doing something notable, using the Quick Start Program.
This program sets Georgia apart from other states. Other states typically provide a workforce training budget and cut a check, Georgia’s approach established the state as a true long-term partner in workforce development and training. KIA was able to train its workforce faster and launch the brand new facility at 70 percent efficiency, significantly outpacing typical rates, which hover between 40 and 50 percent at launch. The presence of KIA has prompted notable infrastructure improvements in the region. These enhancements encompass road accessibility upgrades, connecting interstate highways with state and local roads, ensuring efficient transportation networks. Georgia had invested $30 Million in constructing a new
interchange on I-85, featuring two bridges and five miles of new road. Rail access was also enhanced through the connection of a rail spur to the CSX line with a cost a little north of $6 million. All of these enhancements would require a bolstering of the utilities that were upgraded, including the expansion of water and sewer systems.
• The plant covers 2,200 acres with a total investment of $1.8 Billion.
• Kia has helped to create more than 14,000 jobs and has produced more than 3.9 million vehicles.
• The Kia plant, owned by Hyundai Motor Company, made a $1.2 billion investment in the state.
• The reasons why KIA chose GA for the first KIA plant in the states was due to the excellent rail and highway networks, seaports, and
The middle of Ohio is about to change over the next few years exponentially. This is due to the initial investment of $20 Billion by Intel, the Columbus Metro area will have an increased amount of economic output and traffic that has not been seen before. This plant will be located in Licking County, more specifically, the Intel plant will be approximately 3,190 acres that have been recently annexed from Jersey Township in West Licking.This area is a rather empty area but is expected to increase in levels of unprecedented growth.
The plant will employ approximately 3,000 workers. Jersey Township is roughly a thirtyminute drive from Columbus. The population is a little more than 2,500 people, with the
majority being white. While construction is just starting, the plant should be operational in mid-2025. Intel chose Ohio because it seemed like the best fit, the company did not want to displace any residents. This factor is ever important since the pushback on the proposed Amazon headquarters in New York City would have displaced many residents.
Intel was also drawn to Ohio due to the close proximity of higher education, such as The Ohio State University and other schools. There is an interesting development with the new Intel Plant coming, this historic development could result in a less car reliant metro in the heart of the former Rust Belt. The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission created a map for its annual State of the Region in March of 2023. What this presentation illustrated was that 20 counties
are within an hour’s drive of the site. This could be a great way to connect the region through transit. The Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) plans on placing a .5% sales tax increase on the November 2024 ballot that would help fund bus rapid transit lines through the LinkUS program. The impact of this plant will have important and lasting effects on the State of Ohio.
The Intel corporation’s computer chip manufacturing campus name pays tribute to Ohio’s history of producing firsts, including the Wright brothers, who grew up in Ohio and first envisioned their historic planes here, John Glenn, the first man ever in orbit around the earth, and Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon. The company states that Ohio One brings a new epicenter of leading-edge technology innovation to Ohio.
• The plant covers 2,200 acres with a total investment of $1.8 Billion.
• Kia has helped to create more than 14,000 jobs and has produced more than 3.9 million vehicles.
• The Kia plant, owned by Hyundai Motor Company, made a $1.2 billion investment in the state.
• The reasons why KIA chose GA for the first KIA plant in the states was due to the excellent rail and highway networks, seaports, and possible workforce.
• Intel’s computer chip manufacturing campus will be called “Ohio One,” The name pays tribute to Ohio’s history of producing firsts, including the Wright brothers.
