Gov. Brian Kemp announced $26.5 million in loans and grants from the Georgia Transportation Infrastructure Bank (GTIB).

The GTIB is a grant and low-interest loan program administered by the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA).

Among the funds distributed were a loan to Cobb County’s Cumberland Community Improvement District, described below:

The largest GTIB investment for this round is a $4.9 million loan to the Cumberland CID for the Cumberland Sweep Segment C buildout – a 3+ mile path around the core of the Cumberland District. The project will enhance transportation for more than 80,000 office workers, residents and visitors in the Improvement District by constructing the first portion of the Cumberland Sweep, a 0.4-mile shared-use path that connects to the existing pedestrian bridge over I-285 and includes traffic signal upgrades at Galleria Drive and Galleria Parkway.

The Cumberland CID website describes the Cumberland Sweep as “… a three-mile multimodal path designed to improve connectivity throughout the core of the Cumberland CID with dedicated walking and cycling lanes and an autonomous shuttle system that will make travel easier, more reliable, and safer.

“In addition, a Pedestrian Bridge is planned across Cobb Parkway (U.S. 41), a high-volume, six-lane state route corridor, designed in partnership with the City of Smyrna to improve safety and walkability to Smyrna and to The Battery Atlanta.”

“Thanks to conservative budgeting and strategic funding of our priorities, Georgia is not only the No. 1 state for business we’re also the best state for reliable infrastructure,” said Kemp, who serves as chairman of the SRTA Board. “With this year’s historic rural investment, we’re preserving our competitive edge and reaffirming our commitment to creating opportunity in all parts of our state, especially rural Georgia. I want to thank the General Assembly and the SRTA team for making these awards possible and I look forward to the generational impact they will have on our communities.”