Neighbors say one-lane, dirt road in Rockdale County is an accident waiting to happen

Ashli Lincoln
·2 min read
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A one-lane, unpaved road is causing major concerns for Rockdale County drivers.

They reached out to Channel 2 Action News after several near-collisions with school buses and trucks.

The issue is happening on Flat Shoals Road off Klondike Road.

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Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Ashli Lincoln was in Rockdale County Tuesday, where you can see a sign warning drivers to travel one car at a time. Homeowners say there needs to be a big change before a major accident happens.

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Homeowner Roger Campe said he’s complained about the road for years.

“It’s gotten progressively worse,” Campe said. “With the increased traffic, with more homes being built here, the traffic has gotten progressively worse out here.”

Campe said that when cars aren’t dodging one another, they’re having to snake around school buses and dump trucks, and often times, cars have ended up in ditches. He said at least 40 vehicles have ended up in ditches because the road isn’t wide enough.

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When it rains, conditions are even worse.

“It was a matter of time before someone would get hurt,” Campe said.

Lincoln spoke to Rockdale County officials, who are aware of residents’ concerns and are looking into infrastructure improvements for the stretch of road. Officials have not set a timeline on fixes.

Homeowners said that with each passing day, the chances of another accident happening increase.

“I don’t want to see kids in a school bus go off the road and into a ditch,” Campe said.

The county told Lincoln that they are having an open house on Jan. 24 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Johnson Park.

“At this info session, I will be discussing the latest design status including Layout, ROW, etc. Rockdale ordinance #332-12 and policy 1998-3-9 dictate a minimum of 80% of the property owners shall donate the necessary ROW for a project of this magnitude. Once the design is final, the project will be taken before the Transportation SPLOST committee for approval and funding. This project is estimated to cost $5.0 million,” a spokesperson said.

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