The anticipated north bypass will help address this by rerouting heavy trucks from downtown. Mayor McPherson echoes the significance of this project, emphasizing how it will relieve the city’s main arteries. “That will remove those big semi-trucks that come through the middle of our downtown,” she says. This development, combined with other road projects, will enhance Villa Rica’s connectivity and alleviate pressure on the city’s current roadways, many overburdened. Reese explains, “Everybody basically empties on the same three or four roads, which all end up on I-20.” This lack of connectivity forces a bottleneck, and the city is actively working with the state to widen roads and create more routes for local traffic. In addition to the bypass, Villa Rica is investing in smaller road projects that will offer residents more options for getting around. Mayor McPherson highlights ongoing developments, including a new road connection that will help link different parts of the city without relying on state highways. “I drove by where a major clearing is going on; that’s going to provide a nice connection in the middle of the city,” she says. These small but significant improvements will reduce the need for residents to pour out onto the city’s main thoroughfares, easing congestion. Although smaller in scale, these efforts are part of a larger plan to improve connectivity throughout Villa Rica. “I’ve been in those cities where you get off the highways, and they’ve got a long corridor like Dallas does,” McPherson says, adding that while Villa Rica doesn’t yet have that level of infrastructure, the WaltonTrail.com Walton Trail Brand new affordable community Coming fall 2025 187 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 05, ISSUE 11 VILLA RICA, GA
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