Col. ‘Doc’ Clyde Stinson Perimeter

The Col. ‘Doc’ Clyde Stinson Perimeter is a road in central Georgia also known as the U.S. 441 by-pass, which avoids Dublin’s Central Business District.

Description

1. Traveling north on U.S. Routes 441 & 319 and GA Route 31 north, the Col. ‘Doc’ Clyde Stinson Perimeter also known as the 441 By-pass starts approximately 1 mile north of the I-16 (Interstate 16) interchange and approximately 1 ½ miles south of Dublin, GA city limits.
2. The route traverses west-north-west and meets the following streets southwest of Dublin, GA: Honeysuckle Road (County Road 357), Academy Avenue (County Road 336), and GA Route 257 (Bellevue Road/Marion Street).
3. U.S. 441 By-pass curves northwest and crosses over the Georgia Central Railway a part of the Genesee and Wyoming Inc and Moore Station Road.
4. U.S. 441 By-pass meets Walke Dairy Road (County Road 338) and Gamer Dominy Road (County Road 358) meets on the left.
5. U.S. Route 441 By-pass curves North and meets U.S. Route 80, and GA Routes 26 & 19 (Veterans Boulevard [County Road 19] ).
6. U.S. Route 441 By-pass meets Airport Road (County Road 399) which accesses WH "Bud" Barron Airport.
7. U.S. Route 441 By-pass turns northeast and meets Claxton Dairy Road (County Road 530).
8. U.S. Route 441 By-pass curves north and joins U.S. 441, GA 29 (North Jefferson Street).

History

More than 20 years in the works, the $59.8 million Dublin bypass, which routes travelers from near Interstate 16 to U.S. 441 north of town, opened Tuesday afternoon. The project is a nine-mile stretch that intersects with four state highways and 15 county roads. Construction began in summer 2007.

Planning started more than 20 years ago, but the project was delayed when the route was changed to avoid wetlands, according to George Brewer, preconstruction engineer with the Georgia Department of Transportation.

“There was a long delay,” said Laurens County Commissioner Emory Lake. “They had bought the right-of-ways and had to sell them back.” Lake said the bypass should alleviate traffic congestion downtown and on Industrial Boulevard near Fairview Park Hospital.

According to the DOT, the contract with Newell Road builders of Hope Hull, Ala., called for 206,589 tons of asphalt and the moving of 1.7 million cubic yards of dirt. Ten bridges were built along the route.

County officials plan to name the bypass the “Col. ‘Doc’ Clyde Stinson Perimeter.” Stinson was one of the highest ranking officers killed in the Vietnam War, said Laurens County Commissioner Buddy Adams.

While on his third tour of duty, Stinson was fatally wounded after loading three of his wounded men onto a helicopter, Adams said. Stinson was born and raised on Claxton Dairy Road, which intersects with the new roadway.

“The bypass went through the land they used to farm,” Adams said. The Dublin bypass is the latest completed leg of a plan to four-lane U.S. 441 through Georgia, from North Carolina to Florida. Bypasses in Eatonton, Milledgeville and Irwinton are already complete.

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