Drone photos show progress on South MS highway a year into the $212 million project
Last year’s hot, dry weather was tough on people and plants, but it’s put construction of the bypass on Mississippi 57 ahead of schedule.
“The drought helped us a lot,” said Anna Ehrgott, public information officer for Mississippi Department of Transportation.
Work on the $212 million project began in March 2023 and is projected to be complete in 2027.
Crews are paving sections near the Jim Ramsay Road interchange, she said, and 10 of the 13 bridges along the project are under construction.
On Thursday, a detour of Jim Ramsay Road is expected to open so crews can start building an overpass of the new Highway 57.
The road work has taken down swaths of trees and tinged portions of the existing Mississippi 57 red, as dump trucks drop off load after load of dirt and clay at several points along the road each day.
Road map of progress
Contractor W.G. Yates & Son Construction Company of Philadelphia, Mississippi, has work under way along every section of the nine-mile route from I-10 exit 57 north to the Lake O’Pines area.
The four-lane highway will serve as an evacuation route when tropical weather approaches and a bypass of Vancleave, where five schools and the administration office are packed along about a 1.5-mile stretch of the highway.
Interchanges are being constructed at Gautier-Vancleave Road and at Jim Ramsay Road, along with an additional interchange that will provide a direct connection to the existing highway and business district. It’s near Twin Magnolia Lane in Vancleave.
Ehrgott provided an MDOT progress report on each section of the road:
▪ The southern section: From I-10 to the Gautier-Vancleave Road
Two additional southbound lanes are being built parallel to the existing road.
Once the new section of road is complete, two-way traffic will move to this route while the existing 57 is improved.
Two parallel bridges are under construction in a wet area that frequently floods during heavy storms. The northbound lanes will shift slightly west to cross the new bridge
▪ Center section: The new bypass from Gautier-Vancleave Road around the Vancleave business district
Earthwork and drainage culvert installation is underway from the Gautier-Vancleave Road interchange to Humphrey Road, along Morningside Drive and at the Jim Ramsay Road interchange, MDOT reports.
A new bridge now crosses Humphrey Road and more intermittent road closures will be needed to complete the overhead work. Message boards will continue to notify the community when the road will be closed.
Connector roads are being built between the existing portion of Mississippi 57 and the bypass to provide access to local businesses and to the bypass for a faster route around traffic.
▪ Northern section: North of the business district
A direct connection between Poticaw Bayou Road and the new Jim Ramsay Road interchange is being constructed, so traffic will be able to connect directly with the bypass instead of going through the business district.
In addition to creating a detour of Jim Ramsay Road, paving has begun in the area of the Jim Ramsay interchange.
The bypass will connect back to the existing MS 57 near Irwin Lane at the Lake O’ Pines area.
Traffic impacts
The highway work has been done with minimal delays to traffic. The speed limit is lowered where the twin bridges are under construction on the lower section of 57 and dump trucks turning onto and off of the highway have slowed traffic at times.
In addition to the occasional closing of Humphrey Road to complete the bridge work there and the detour on Jim Ramsay Road, MDOT says drivers can expect traffic shifts along county roads near the new bypass as progress continues.
This story was originally published February 14, 2024 at 10:43 AM.
