A widening and resurfacing project for Chilton County Road 29 will begin Jan. 1, 2013.

Chilton County engineer Tony Wearren said the project will start at Highway 31 and go 4.5 miles along County Road 29 to improve road conditions along a stretch of road that Wearren said is the second most heavily traveled road in the county.

“More than 1,400 cars travel that road daily,” Wearren said. “The road condition is bad, with parts of the road actually cracking due to the high volume of daily traffic.”

The project will cost $900,000 with Wiregrass Construction doing the widening and resurfacing work.

Wearren said 80 percent of the funds for the project are coming from the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) with Chilton County being required to come up with a 20 percent match of funds.

“The county is required to come up with 20 percent since it is a state project following ALDOT guidelines,” Wearren said. “ALDOT puts up 80 percent and we have to match the rest.”

The Chilton County Commission approved a resolution on Oct. 22 to sign an agreement with ALDOT and allocate funds for the project.

Wearren said during the project, traffic will still be allowed to drive on the road with sections of a lane closed at different times.

“We will do everything in increments,” Wearren said. “Traffic will still be allowed to use the road.”

Wearren said the projected length of the project is anticipated to be 30-45 working days but weather will be a contributing factor to the exact length.

“We will be doing this project during the winter so we aren’t really sure how the weather will affect us,” Wearren said. “We may have to stretch it out to two or three months depending on how the weather hits us.”