Athens, Georgia in the context of "University of Georgia"

A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access highways, railroads, canals, hiking paths, bridle paths for horses, bicycle paths, the routes taken by high-voltage lines (also known as wayleave), utility tunnels, or simply the paved or unpaved local roads used by different types of traffic. The term highway is often used in legal contexts in the sense of "main way" to mean any public-use road or any public-use road or path. Some are restricted as to mode of use (for example, pedestrians only, pedestrians, horse and cycle riders, vehicles capable of a minimum speed).

Rights-of-way in the legal sense (the right to pass through or to operate a transportation facility) can be created in a number of different ways. In some cases, a government, transportation company, or conservation non-profit purchases the full ownership of real estate, including everything above and below the ground. Many rights-of-way are created instead by easement, which is a right to cross that does not include full ownership of the land. For example, the original owner may still retain mineral rights under the right-of-way easement, but not the right to exclude people from passing through certain parts of what would otherwise be private land.

Clarke County is located in the East Central region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 128,671. Its county seat is Athens, with which it is a consolidated city-county. Clarke County is included in the Athens-Clarke County, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Atlanta-Athens-Clarke County-Sandy Springs, GA Combined Statistical Area.

The Athens-Clarke County Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of four counties – Clarke, Madison, Oconee, and Oglethorpe – in northeastern Georgia, anchored by the city of Athens. As of the 2020 census, the MSA had a population of 215,479.

Georgia is a state located in the Southern United States. According to the 2010 United States census, Georgia was the 8th most populous state with 9,688,681 inhabitants and the 21st largest by land area spanning 57,513.49 square miles (148,959.3 km) of land. Georgia is divided into 159 counties and contains 535 municipalities consisting of cities, towns, consolidated city-counties, and consolidated cities.

There is no legal difference in Georgia between cities and towns. Eight municipalities have merged with their counties to form consolidated city-counties: Athens with Clarke County, Augusta with Richmond County, Columbus with Muscogee County, Cusseta with Chattahoochee County, Georgetown with Quitman County, Macon with Bibb County, Statenville with Echols County, and Webster County unified government with Webster County. Athens and Augusta also have municipalities independent of the consolidated governments and are considered consolidated cities.