Houston County, AL - Forrester Road has seen better days.

It's one of nine roads in Houston County that will get some much needed improvements. That's thanks to the Alabama Transportation Rehabilitation and Improvement Program, better known as ATRIP.

"This is a godsend. It's a great program. We commend Governor Bentley, and we're excited about the projects. We submitted the projects based on the need, and based on the condition of the road. The state chose the projects to award at this time," said Houston County Commission Chairman Mark Culver.

Houston County has been awarded 13 million dollars for the projects.

Major portions of Fortner Street, Saunders Road, Stateline Road and even Westgate are just a few roads that will get a facelift.

Through the ATRIP program, the state provides 80 percent of funding, leaving local governments accountable for the other 20 percent.

"They all have about the same amount of damage and graded by the state. We'll go out and look at cross drains and what needs repairing before we pave. The roads that require the least amount of work upfront by us will be the ones we do first," said Barkley Kirkland, interim Houston County engineer.

That work could begin in about three months. While it may be a traffic headache for a bit, Culver said it will be worth it.

"You just have to look beyond that 2-4 months that the work is going on and know soon you will have a new road that's a lot smoother. Most importantly to us, it will last longer," he said.

The projects will be designed to last for the next thirty years.

The county still has $15 million in projects submitted for the last round of ATRIP funding, and they plan to submit one more. The next round will be announced in August.