CUMMING — The much anticipated extension of Lanier 400 Parkway opened Tuesday.

The new stretch, which essentially parallels Ga. 400, links Pirkle Ferry and Pilgrim Mill roads. Prior to the extension, the road stopped near the Forsyth County Juvenile Court.

It now comes out on Pilgrim Mill near the Cumming Aquatic Center, University of North Georgia’s local campus, state Driver Services Center and the National Guard Regional Readiness Center.

“It’ll be an east bypass, because we think it’s going to alleviate a lot of intersection traffic downtown,” said Cumming Mayor H. Ford Gravitt. “So we’re happy that we were finally able to get the road ready and the citizens can use it at their convenience.”

Gravitt was joined by several city and county officials for a ribbon cutting ceremony heralding the opening Tuesday morning.

The project had been delayed after encountering unexpected rock deposits and uncooperative weather.

The extension was the last in a series of projects agreed on by the governments of Cumming and Forsyth County, which contributed about $3.5 million to the effort. The project was part of an extension of the 1-cent sales tax program.

The other projects were the Canton Highway (Hwy. 20)-Kelly Mill Road crossing and improvements along Bald Ridge Marina Road to make way for Costco.

“We’ve worked pretty hard on this road, along with our engineers,” Gravitt said of the city. “A few years ago, we had a drought. Lake Lanier [nearly] went dry.

“Since we started the road, the rain came and started to overflow the lake in a few places, so we were delayed three or four months on this road.”

Even with the delays, the mayor said city was able to come in under budget.

“The $6 million estimated cost, we ended up spending about $5.5 million, so we feel very good that we were able to come in under cost,” he said.