By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Western arc of Statesboro 301 Bypass detoured for RR crossing work Mon.-Fri.
Distance traffic rerouted through middle of town, but parkway open for ‘local’ traffic, access to businesses
RR crossing
An 18-wheeler crosses over the railroad tracks on Veterans Memorial Parkway, west of Highway 301 in Statesboro Thursday. The west side of the bypass will be closed to fix the crossing for up to five days beginning on Monday. - photo by SCOTT BRYANT/staff

Through-traffic that would ordinarily follow the western portion of the U.S. Highways 301 and 25 Bypass – also known as Veterans Memorial Parkway – between U.S. 301 South and U.S. Highway 80 West of Statesboro will be detoured through the middle of town from 7 a.m. Monday, Dec. 4, until 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8, the Georgia Department of Transportation announced.

The reason for the detour is that Patriot Rail Company, new owner of the short-line Georgia Southern Railroad, will be making improvements to the rail crossing between J.C. Lewis Ford and Jimmy Britt Chrysler on the bypass just west of U.S. 301 South. The detour could end sooner if the work is completed ahead of schedule or could last longer if there is a weather delay, the Georgia DOT’s press release stated.

The railroad crossing itself will be closed completely to all four lanes of traffic while the work is done. However, a bold-letter note in the Georgia DOT’s letter of responsibility to the railroad company and Statesboro city officials emphasized that the bypass “will remain open to local traffic up to the work zone.” This will allow access to businesses, schools and homes.

“Here’s the thing. We have to keep our detours on state routes, but locals know how to get around,” Jill Nagel, District 5 communications officer for the GDOT, told the Statesboro Herald. “They can pick their own route. … So, if somebody is not going the full length of the bypass on the west side, then they can find their way around it, because (the closure) is  just right there at the railroad tracks.”

 

The official detour

Officially, the detour, following state and federal routes as required, extends 5.1 miles and affects through-traffic in both directions. Traffic following detour signs from U.S. 301 on the south side of town or reaching the main highway there from the eastern loop of the bypass will instead travel north on 301 where it becomes Statesboro’s South Main and North Main Streets for three miles and turn left at the traffic light onto U.S. Highway 80/25 (Northside Drive West).

Conversely, traffic traveling east on U.S. 80/25 from the direction of Portal and Millen will simply avoid the bypass entrance, continue for 2.1 miles into Statesboro and turn right at the traffic light onto 301 South.

 

Other roads open

But all intersections along the western bypass, such as at Cypress Lake Road, Country Club Road, Pulaski Road and Westside Road, will remain open.

Drivers who would ordinarily use the western bypass to reach Bulloch Academy  or businesses such as the Chrysler dealership from 301 South will need to find a different route, local officials acknowledged.

So too will drivers who would ordinarily continue from the western segment of the Veterans Memorial Parkway across 301 South onto the eastern loop on their way to destinations such as the Publix shopping center, parts of the Georgia Southern campus, or East Georgia Regional Medical Center. But the heavily trafficked eastern loop itself will not be affected.


RR crossing
This map shows the area on Veterans Memorial Parkway that will be detoured beginning Monday repair work on the Georgia Southern Railroad crossing. - photo by EDDIE LEDBETTER/staff

 

Patriot Rail’s project

Patriot Rail purchased the Georgia Southern Railroad from previous owner Pioneer Lines within the past year. An assessment was done of the railroad’s properties and crossings, and this one showed up as needing maintenance, said Katie Roller, director of public affairs for Patriot Rail’s Georgia Southern Railroad.

The company coordinated with the GDOT for permission to close the crossing and arranged a detour while the work is done, she said. But the railroad company, not the GDOT, is paying for the maintenance work.

“That will actually be a concrete-top crossing when it’s all done, which is the preferred material for that type of roadway and the traffic that utilizes that crossing,” Roller said. “So I think it will be a nice, smooth ride for those that utilize it.”

Statesboro’s city government does not have a direct role in the project. But the city’s Public Works and Engineering Director John Washington received a letter emailed Nov. 28 from Derek Metts, public projects engineer for Patriot Rail Company, providing a map of the detour route and seeking the city’s cooperation to inform the public

City officials have reasons to want to see this work done, Washington indicated in a phone interview.

“The railroad crossing there, people have been complaining about it; they’ve been calling Public Works, calling City Hall, emailing people who they have direct contact with and asking when is this railroad crossing going to be repaired where it’s not going to be so rough,” he said. “And this has been going on for, I don’t know how long.”

The Statesboro Police Department has no planned role in redirecting traffic, but placed a notice on its social media pages advising people to “plan ahead and use alternative routes.”

Crews from the GDOT itself will be responsible for setting up the signs for the detour and the closing of the railroad crossing, according to Nagel.

“Everything will be signed,” she said. “They’ll have advanced warning signs that a detour is coming up, they’ll have directional signs, message boards. So folks will know before they get up on it, especially at that 301 intersection there. It will have ‘Road Closed,’ so people know they’ll have to turn around.”

Sign up for the Herald's free e-newsletter
Standoff in Flemington ends with man's death
GBI identifies man wanted on felony warrant who barricaded himself inside residence
Flemington Standoff
Law enforcement cordoned off a Flemington neighborhood Friday afternoon as a standoff with a man wanted on Maryland warrant for aggravated assault ensued. - photo by PATRICK DONAHUE

FLEMINGTON – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is looking into the death of a man Friday following a standoff with law enforcement.

Daquan Phillips, 26, of Baltimore, was wanted on an aggravated assault warrant out of Maryland. At about 1:50 p.m. Friday, the U.S. Marshals Service, along with Liberty County Sheriff’s Office deputies, went to a Tranquil South home to carry out the warrant.

According to the GBI, one person was removed from the home without incident. Phillips, who was outside when law enforcement officers arrived, went into the home and barricaded himself.

Liberty County Sheriff’s Maj. Bill Kirkendall said Phillips did not respond to repeated attempts to establish communication.

Flash bang grenades were heard deployed around 6:15 p.m. and shots were fired shortly thereafter.

“We waited as long as we could,” Kirkendall said.

Kirkendall said law enforcement’s goal was to bring the situation to a peaceful conclusion.

“When that failed, they had to take immediate action to protect citizens in the area,” he said.

After hours of attempting to communicate with Phillips, entry was made into the home. Phillips was discovered in the home with what appeared to be a gunshot wound, and was later pronounced dead by the Liberty County Coroner’s Office. A 5-year-old child was removed from the home safe and unharmed.

Phillips’ body will be taken to the GBI Crime Lab in Pooler, Georgia where an autopsy will be performed.

Multiple agencies, including the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, the Hinesville Police Department, Savannah Police Department SWAT, the McIntosh County Sheriff’s Office, and Georgia State Patrol responded to assist.

This case is active and ongoing. Once complete, the case file will be given to the Atlantic Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for Review.

“This is a quickly-evolving situation,” Kirkendall said, “and the investigation is still in its infancy.”

Sign up for the Herald's free e-newsletter