Jackson County holds public meeting to discuss Highway 609 project

Jackson County held a public meeting today to openly discuss the new project down the Highway 609 corridor.

The plan for this project is to improve traffic safety as well as beautify the road.

The project will run all the way from I-10 to Highway 90 in Ocean Springs. Construction will eliminate majority of the center turn lanes and replace them with curved medians.

The new road will also feature sidewalks, street lightning, and curb-and-gutter drainage.

The project is broken down into two phases. Phase one begins from I-10 going south, around the Old Fort Bayou intersection.

Phase two starts at Old Fort Bayou going south to Highway 90. Jackson County Project Manager Matthew Hosey said, “For me as an engineer, it’s very important because it improves public safety, and that’s always our number one goal: to make everything safer for the public. And if we can reduce fatalities along the road by doing this project, I think it will be a success for sure.”

As of now, only phase one is fully funded.