A new stoplight is in place and operational on Highway 441 in northern Milledgeville. In October, residents of Milledgeville noticed the construction next to Ruby Tuesday and Mattress Firm, by the Milledgeville Mall. The new intersection will change the traffic pattern in the area and aims to increase safety for drivers in an area where pulling out of the shopping centers can be troublesome.
This light is only two and a half miles north of GC, and students have to drive through at least seven other stoplight-regulated intersections to get there if they take the suggested route on Apple Maps.
Rick Williams is a member of the Georgia state Senate representing District 25, which includes Milledgeville, Eatonton, Gray, Monticello and Locust Grove. He has been serving in the Georgia Senate since January and served in the Georgia House of Representatives for six years prior.
Williams was instrumental in the implementation of this stoplight and has been advocating for increased traffic regulations for years. His main goal is to increase the safety of drivers.
“The traffic at that mall has been horrendous for years and has gotten worse and worse,” Williams said. “I’ve known people that have been injured there or had automobile accidents. I know there’s been some fatalities even pulling out of McDonald’s down there, so it’s become a very dangerous stretch of road.”
Since entering office, Williams has worked with the Georgia Department of Transportation, or GDOT, to reduce the danger for drivers in this area. In order to slow down traffic and allow people to safely exit the Milledgeville Mall parking lot, a traffic light is being installed.
“Hopefully, this is going to make it safer for people visiting Starbucks, or Ruby Tuesday, or the Milledgeville Mall or even LongHorn Steakhouse,” Williams said. “They’ll have a way to get out, to make a left turn, to make a right turn, to come toward town and be safer. They won’t be trying to pull out into moving traffic; they’ll actually have a controlled intersection for them to pull out.”
However, not all of those in Milledgeville are thrilled about the new addition. Alyssa Baker, a junior management major, and Isabella Dattilio, a senior chemistry major, voiced their opinions on the new stoplight.
“I feel like they should not be making another red light,” Baker said. “I feel like traffic’s already pretty bad, and adding another light is only going to back things up.”
Dattilio weighed in as well.
“I think the traffic light is probably going to be annoying at first, respectfully, just because people who are going down that road like they’re going to Walmart are used to just keep going straight and not having to brake or anything,” Dattilio said. “But it’s going to be beneficial to the people on the other sides of the road who are trying to cross because making a left or right out of Starbucks is already kind of dangerous in itself.”
However, many people may not know that this light is a temporary feature. Over the next few years, the GDOT will be working to close most entrances to the Milledgeville Mall lot and the Big Lots parking lot across the street.
One main problem that was identified was that there are too many ways to get in and out of the surrounding shopping centers. Having too many access points slowed down drivers along the road and made pulling onto Highway 441 very difficult. Once some of these access points get closed, the permanent stoplight will be placed slightly further north, close to LongHorn.
“I feel like having less entrances would be good because it would also make things more centralized,” Baker said. “I just feel like there could be a more productive way of doing something versus just adding another light, but I guess if that’s the long-term goal, that makes sense.”
Still, it will be a few years before the permanent lights are put in place. Until then, college students and Milledgeville residents will have to adjust to the current traffic pattern changes.
“We want to make sure that, you know, as y’all come to town, if you’re going to the mall, if you’re going to Starbucks, we want you to be safe,” Williams said.
