A long-planned Georgia Department of Transportation project aimed at repairing the slopes along Taylor Ridge in Chattooga County has reached the bidding stage.

GDOT accepted contractor bids Friday, September 18, for Project 0015413, identified as SR 1/US 27 at Taylor Ridge – Phase II.

The project involves approximately 0.208 mile of US 27/SR 1 in Chattooga County and is classified by GDOT as a slope repair project. It was listed as Call Order 016 in the department’s September construction letting. Bids were due by 11 AM Friday.

The project is intended to address slope conditions along the section of US 27 crossing Taylor Ridge east of Summerville.

GDOT’s Statewide Transportation Improvement Program previously estimated the total project cost at approximately $9.85 million. That planning estimate included about $8.75 million for construction, $500,000 for preliminary engineering, $500,000 for right-of-way and $100,000 for utilities.

Those figures should not be confused with the actual construction contract. The final cost will become clearer when GDOT posts the results of Friday’s bidding and ultimately awards the contract.

The Taylor Ridge project has been in development for several years. GDOT lists the work as a reconstruction and rehabilitation project with slope repair as the primary work type.

The project is significant locally because US 27 is one of Chattooga County’s primary north-south highways and the main highway connection across Taylor Ridge between Summerville and the Rome area.