WINFIELD - Updated plans for U.S. 35 in Putnam County now feature an interchange at Buffalo.
The plan was announced Tuesday at a public meeting on the proposed road bond amendment and the U.S. 35-Toyota Interchange.
Sen. Glenn Jeffries (D-Putnam) hosted the meeting, allowing residents to learn more about the amendment and how it will affect Putnam County if it passes.
Transportation Secretary Tom Smith presented information about the amendment and took questions from the dozens of community members in attendance Tuesday.
Smith said previous plans could have included an "at-grade intersection" at Shamrock Lane and U.S. 35, near the Toyota Motor Manufacturing plant in Buffalo.
The intersection could have had a stoplight directing traffic between the roads; however, Smith said the final plans for that specific intersection were not concrete.
Ryan Powers, deputy chief of the Winfield Volunteer Fire Department, said the proposed intersection posed several safety concerns - including high-speed crashes.
Many also have expressed concerns about tractor-trailers driving in the area.
"We just hadn't gotten to how we were going to treat that intersection yet," Smith said. "We've heard your concerns with trucks... We're going to put an interchange out there."
Smith's announcement was greeted with applause from the audience, several of whom expressed safety concerns over the previous plans.
Smith presented a poster showing a concept of a diamond-shaped interchange in the area.
"We think Route 35 in Putnam County, and all this area, is right for economic recovery," Smith said. "We heard you, this is good for economic development. Let's do this. It will be better for Toyota, I hope Toyota will expand. This will accommodate the expansion. "
Susie Lowrey, a Fraziers Bottom resident who owns commercial property where the interchange is proposed, said she was thrilled to hear about the proposed interchange.
"I was worried," she said. "It was T intersection before.... It's going to be safer this way. I'm now just trying to find out if this interchange will affect my property. I've been waiting on the completion of this road for 17 years."
Smith said portions of the project are expected to be complete in November 2018, but the addition of the interchange will take longer.
Smith, Jeffries, Senate President Mitch Carmichael, R-Jackson, and several other officials spoke about the amendment and its proposed affect on Putnam County and the rest of the state.
Smith said, if passed, the amendment would not increase taxes and would "instantly" create approximately 48,000 jobs.
If passed, Smith said the amendment would not only affect the state's infrastructure, but tourism, economic development and could lower insurance rates for drivers in the state.
Early voting for the amendment begins Friday, and the referendum vote is Oct. 7.
Reach Carlee Lammers at Carlee.Lammers@wvgazettemail.com, 3204-348-1230 or follow @CarleeLammers on Twitter.
