The Selma Times-Journal

Near the intersection of Highway 80 and County Road 67, an excavator emptied a bucket full of earth into the back of a dump truck Monday afternoon on the long awaited industrial access road.

The road will give local Hyundai suppliers and other industries better access to Montgomery.

The project is due in part to an Industrial Access Road (IAR) Grant totaling $2.5 million. The grant also tacked on a $130,000 supplemental grant and the Alabama Department of Transportation &045; Public, Roads and Bridges – awarded a grant of $390,000, brining the total money available for this project to $3,020,000.

Walker Patton won the bid to work on the Access Road, beating out seven other potential contractors with a bid of $2,698,928.25.

Construction on the road began on June 27, but has been slowed by rain. Despite that, the project, which is expected to last until next April, has moved along quickly. Workers are finished with the clearing and grubbing and are currently doing the excavating.

The project will also require some work to be done on U.S. Highway 31.

To remedy that problem, the grant allows for the construction of a turning lane.

According to Jones, this project will benefit Dallas County as a whole by opening up routes for the Hyundai suppliers that are currently in Dallas County.

According to Jones, this project will cut the time it takes for Hyundai suppliers to travel to Montgomery.

But, the new Industrial Access Road isn’t the only piece of news that will benefit the area. County Commissioner Kim Ballard talked about an upcoming announcement scheduled for August 12.

Ballard said it is just one of the indicators that things are improving in Dallas County.

The Industrial Access Road is scheduled for completion on April 22, 2006.