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The city of Atmore has been awarded ATRIP-II funding for a road project at the intersection of Highway 21 and Poarch Road, according to a release.

Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Transportation announced Jan. 12 that more than $45 million in funding was awarded to cities and counties for various road and bridge projects.

Funds included $388,669 in state funds, and $58,000 in local matching funds.

The project includes improvements on Highway 21 at Poarch Road east, including adding a right turn lane on Highway 21 north, adding a left turn lane on the highway south and modifying the existing traffic signal.

The funding is made available through the Alabama Transportation Rehabilitation and Improvement Program-II (ATRIP-II), a program created under the Rebuild Alabama Act. The Rebuild Alabama Act requires ATRIP-II to be an annual program setting aside a minimum of $30 million off the top of ALDOT’s share of new gas tax revenue for projects of local interest on the state highway system.

“In Alabama, across our country and around the globe, we are all still working to get COVID-19 behind us, but here at home, we have not forgotten other priorities. Even as we are overcoming new challenges with the virus, we remain ever committed to making needed improvements to our infrastructure,” Governor Ivey said. “I am proud that Rebuild Alabama continues making these investments possible in areas all across our state. Alabama continues to show progress and tangible results for the people of our state.”

There were 27 projects selected for funding for a total of $45.99 million. Of those awarded projects, 20 were from cities and counties putting forward local funds, for a total of approximately $15.7 million. However, matching funds were not a requirement to be eligible.

The projects were selected by the ATRIP-II Committee created by the Rebuild Alabama Act. It is anticipated that a number of projects will be under contract during the 2021 fiscal year, however all projects are required to move forward within two years of the awarding of funds.