UPDATE: According to the City of Athens, work on the bypass lane has been postponed due to expected rain in the forecast. A new start date has yet to be announced.

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Motorists looking to travel east from the roundabout on Lindsay Lane may soon see some relief from recent traffic problems created by the road project on Alabama 251.

The City Council voted unanimously during its May 24 meeting to approve the installation of a bypass lane at the intersection of Nick Davis and Linton roads.

City Engineer Michael Griffin said the Alabama Department of Transportation’s project to create a new roundabout at the intersection of 251 and Lindsay Lane has caused issues at the existing roundabout when it comes to traffic traveling east.

“What we have noticed is a stack in the mornings and afternoons on the east side of the (existing) roundabout,” Griffin said. “What this proposes to do, people taking the left for the (251) detour stay in their lane, and the people trying to go home on Nick Davis going eastbound, it allows them to go around. It’s a bypass. The people who are taking a left can stay where they are at, and the people trying to go home and get to the east side of the city can go around them.”

According to city officials, construction of the bypass lane is set to begin Friday, with Grayson Carter and Son Contracting expected to lay asphalt the following day. If work is not completed Saturday, it will be finished the following day.

Nick Davis Road will be one lane only during construction hours.

“We’re expected to live with that (detour) for about another year,” Griffin said. “This is one of the ways we believe we can accommodate it for a year and get some of that traffic freed up. It is a temporary fix for a temporary issue.”

Council member Chris Seibert said he had talked to several people who thought the bypass was a “really good idea.” He asked Griffin how many vehicles the proposed bypass could accommodate. Griffin told Seibert the lane would be long enough for 10-12 vehicles.

Council member Harold Wales echoed Seibert’s sentiments, saying he felt the bypass was needed after traveling the area himself.

Council member Frank Travis asked how long before the lane could be implemented, to which Griffin said the lane was a “pretty easy” feature to add because it was basically shoulder work.