Reunion Parkway opens to traffic
Officials gathered to celebrate the opening of the first half of the $22.7 million Reunion Parkway connecting Highway 51 to Parkway East on Wednesday afternoon.
The newly opened road will connect Highway 51 at the intersection of Green Oak Lane west to the Parkway East, county engineer Tim Bryan said. The road will continue west across the interstate and connect to Bozeman Road, creating a new east to west corridor.
“It will be great to have an additional east-to-west route across the interstate,” Bryan said.
The project has been ongoing for “almost two years”, Bryan said.
“This is just one step in a multi-step process,” Bryan said.
Bryan said the second portion of this project has a projected completion time in August.
The $22.7 million project was awarded to Hemphill Construction and, Bryan said is currently operating “ahead of schedule and under budget.” The project is a joint venture between the Madison County board of Supervisors and the Mississippi Department of Transportation that utilizes money form city, county, state and federal sources. The county is paying for their portion through bonds.
County officials have said this roadway will open up new land for development and relieve traffic congestion.
This is the second phase of the project. Bryan said phase one of the project connected Bozeman Road to Highway 463.
Commissioner Willie Simmons, Chairman of the Mississippi Transportation Commission, said a $2.2 million intersection improvement project on U.S. 51 at Green Oak Lane was recently completed.
The work consisted of widening roadways along with the installation of intersection channelization and a traffic signal system.
The project also provides the U.S. 51 tie-in needed for the adjacent Reunion Parkway project currently underway by the Madison County Board of Supervisors. He announced the completion of the project in late February in an update that included more than a dozen projects underway in Central Mississippi.
“Your tax dollars are hard at work improving our roads and bridges through these projects, some of which are currently wrapping up,” said Commissioner Simmons. “This kind of progress is great to see across central Mississippi. Please slow down, stay alert and give our crews the necessary space to safely complete these projects as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
When the Reunion Parkway is complete, Bryan said the ultimate plan is to have the bridge over the interstate connect to I-55.