TROUP COUNTY, Ga. (WRBL) – Senator Jon Ossoff visited The Ray and KIA Georgia on June 30, 2021. During his visit at The Ray, he announced that he will be introducing the Sustainable Highways Innovation Act in the United States Senate.

“This legislation will permit the use of underutilized highway rights of way on interstate highways across the country for purposes like this, solar energy generation. For energy and data transmission to connect communities with broadband internet access and for electric vehicle charging infrastructure,” said Ossoff.

The Ray is an 18-mile stretch of I-85 in Troup County that is working to make highways more safe and sustainable. It features 2,600 solar panels that were built and maintained by Georgia Power and are pollinator friendly. The clean energy obtained from the solar panels are sold to Georgia Power customers across the state.

Senator Ossoff described The Ray as an extraordinary asset to Georgia. He said it is the nations leading example of sustainable energy.

“I was really honored to tour The Ray today to see how solar energy generation, data and energy transmission, growing vegetation that supports populations of pollinating insects, all the while putting safety first,” said Ossoff.

Ossoff said there are some core goals that must be achieved in the upcoming decade. Those include, encouraging the mass adoption of electric vehicles, accelerating the transition to clean energy and ensuring that every community in Georgia and across the country has access to broadband highspeed internet.

Ossoff also emphasized how transitioning from fossil fuel combustion to clean energy will create thousands of jobs not only in Georgia but in the entire country. He said he intends to make a generational investment in clean energy and infrastructure.

At KIA Georgia, Senator Ossoff took a tour at the facility and had the opportunity to meet many KIA employees. He emphasized that he and Senator Warnock worked swiftly together to have The U.S. Innovation and Competition Act, passed by the Senate.

“The shortage of semiconductors is a major issue for auto manufacturers including KIA and for a wide range of American industries. Senator Warnock and I are committed to fighting for Georgia workers and employers in Georgia and that’s why we worked so hard to expedite the passage of this legislation,” said Ossoff.