The regional transportation wish list is in, and now it's up to the gate-keeping Executive Committee of the Atlanta Transportation Roundtable to whittle it down to a list that voters will see at the ballot box in July 2012.

The 445 projects on the unconstrained project wish list submitted by counties, cities and agencies within the 10-county Atlanta region is estimated to be about $22.9 billion.

The one-penny regional sales tax, if approved in 2012, is estimated to generate about $8 billion over 10 years.

Most of the projects submitted from Rockdale/Conyers in March made the list, but a few projects had been culled, such as the Hayden Quarry Road/Sigman Road widening on the Rockdale side, the widening of Ga. Highway 138 north to the Walton County line and the bypass under Ga. Highway 138 from Green Street to the Wal Mart shopping center. 

The Hayden Quarry Road/Sigman Road widening was still on the list for the DeKalb County side, however. Conyers Public Works Director Brad Sutton said later that meant the road widening would stop at the Rockdale County border.

A Walton County project for Ga. Highway 138 widening from Miller Bottom Road to State Route 10 is on the unconstrained list for the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission Roundtable, which is made up of 12 counties surrounding Athens/Clarke County.

The Atlanta Transportation Roundtable executive committee will work on paring down the list over the summer to a financially feasible draft investment list, which is due by August 15.

The Roundtable, which is made up of one county commissioner and one city mayor from each county including Rockdale County CEO Richard Oden and Conyers Mayor Randy Mills, will be holding a series of town hall meetings over the summer and "telephone town hall" meetings in June.

"As we assemble the project list, the Roundtable's primary objective is to ensure that all projects can be underway within 10 years and guarantee that spending is 100 percent accountable and transparent to everyone," said Roundtable Chairman and Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson in a released statement. "That's why it's so important that all residents participate and provide us with their preferences."

Oden said the list was he expected to see and noticed there were many projects along the beltway. 

"This is a transit oriented process," he said. "Those communities that resist transit will lose - in my opinion. The bigger dollars are going into the transit side."

Mills said "I think this is a pretty good list. This goes to the intent of what the Act is about."

The task now for the Executive Committee and then the Roundtable would be cut down about two-thirds of the list.

"When the list is whittled down, is everyone going to be happy with what they end up with? That’s where the rubber’s going to meet the road," said Mills.

The projects on the unconstrained list and the funding requests of interest to Rockdale/Conyers include:

- Sigman Road widening and corridor improvements from Lester Road to Dogwood Road connector ($40 million)

- Commerce Crossing new overpass and alignment of I-20 East from Old Salem Road to Old Covington Highway ($22.59 million)

- Salem Road (Ga. Highway 162) widening from Flat Shoals Road to Old Salem Road ($43 million)

- Parker Road widening from Flat Shoals Road to Miller Chapel Road ($4.88 million)

- Old Salem Road realignment to relocate intersection away from Ga. Highway 138/20 and the ramps at I-20 ($28.88 million)

- Flat Shoals Road widening from Salem Road (Ga. Highway 162) ($9.69 million)

On the DeKalb County side:

 - Hayden Quarry Road/Sigman Road Extension new alignment from Turner Hill Road to I-20 East ($14.3 million)  

On the Walton County side (in the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission Roundtable):

- Ga. Highway 138 widening and intersection improvements from Miller Bottom Road to

To see the entire project list, click here or go to http://www.atlantaregionalroundtable.com/docs/TIA_unconstrained_list_6-1-2011.pdf