Buc-ee's begins construction on massive travel center near Forsyth County

A 74,000-square-foot Buc-ee’s is taking shape off Exit 181 on Interstate 75, just outside Forsyth in Monroe County, bringing a big jobs promise with an equally big traffic question for the Rumble Road corridor. The travel center is scheduled to open in spring 2027 and will be one of the largest Buc-ee’s stores in the company’s history.

The project broke ground April 7 at 1080 Rumble Road, where about 150 people gathered, including all five Monroe County commissioners, state legislators, development leaders and Buc-ee’s founder Arch Aplin III. The company says the site will include about 100 fueling positions and more than 200 full-time jobs, with a starting wage of $18 an hour, full benefits, a 6% matching 401(k) and three weeks of paid vacation.

For Monroe County, the project has moved through a series of approvals and road commitments. The Monroe County Commission approved zoning variances and a special use permit in December 2024, and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division approved a stream buffer variance in July 2025. State officials later announced $5 million in road-improvement funding for the Rumble Road area to handle the traffic Buc-ee’s is expected to draw.

Buc-ee’s will be the company’s fourth Georgia location, and Monroe County officials say the new store is partly meant to relieve congestion at the chain’s Warner Robins travel center, which is about 53,000 square feet. The Monroe County store will be larger than that, and the company expects it to pull more travelers off I-75 and into the local economy. With its barbecue, homemade fudge, kolaches, jerky and signature restrooms, Buc-ee’s has become a destination as much as a gas stop, and that kind of pull can redirect spending toward fuel, food and retail purchases across the corridor.

That is also where the concern starts. Residents and commuters near Rumble Road and Exit 181 are likely to see heavier traffic, more pressure on local roads and a faster pace of development around the interchange. Supporters say the payoff will come through jobs, tax revenue, expected FLOST revenue and broader economic development. For nearby small businesses, the new flow of drivers could mean more customers and more competition at the same time, as one of the region’s biggest travel centers begins to reshape a stretch of highway already under strain.