Construction on a $3.6 million project extending Government Fleet Road to the Adams County Port should begin no later than January 2011, according to a July Mississippi Department of Transportation press release.

City Engineer Jim Marlow said he is hopeful construction can begin sooner than January.

Extending Government Fleet from Providence Road to the port will cut two miles off the trip trucks must make to the port, Port Director Anthony Hauer said. It will also provide a second route in case of an emergency at the port, he said.

District 5 Supervisor S.E. “Spanky” Felter said the road would also provide Vidalia with an easy point of access to the Adams County Port.

Felter said construction companies and heavy equipment would most often use the road.

The county has been working with MDOT on the project for at least six years.

The Port Connector Road Project involves realigning and widening Government Fleet Road and adding and an extension to the L.E. Barry Road near the Port of Natchez. The work will include grading, drainage, bridge and paving work.

The project was estimated to cost $3.5 million. The supervisors accepted for $3.6 million in August from W.E. Blain and Sons, Inc.

The project will be funded on an 80/20 match, with up to $3,096,067 in funds from the National Highway System Intermodal Connector Improvement Program, an MDOT press release said.

Adams County Chancery Clerk Tommy O’Beirne said the county will fund an estimated $400,000 for the project during the next fiscal year and has already spent an estimated $300,000 on the project.

Felter said funding issues, right-of-way issues and design issues contributed to the project’s hold-up.

He said it is a main priority because the county has already spent money on the project over a number years.

Felter said the extension could possibly attract more business to the port.

Marlow said the county can execute the contract to begin construction as soon as MDOT grants its approval to concur with the county’s decision to award the contract to W.E. Blain and Sons, Inc.

MDOT could possibly approve county’s bid contract choice at their next meeting, which is Tuesday, Marlow said.

Marlow said once the supervisors receive notification of MDOT’s concurrence, the project will be on a fast track to beginning construction.

“When it is all said and done, I hope it is good tax dollars well spent,” District 2 Supervisor Henry Watts said.