The Mississippi Department of Economic Development is hereby authorized and directed to select and designate certain links of roads or highways to connect any and all approved, acceptable and selected industrial sites that may be located at any point not now accessible to adequate highways and road facilities, and shall issue a certificate of public convenience and necessity to the effect that such designated and selected link of highway or road should be constructed in order to encourage and promote the industrial development of any port or harbor area or other industrial site, and shall immediately file such certificate of public convenience and necessity with the Director of the Mississippi State Highway Commission. However, the Mississippi Department of Economic Development shall not select and designate any such link of road or highway until such time as the department shall have satisfactory evidence that an industry desires and intends to locate on such site, and that the location of such industry and the construction of such road or highway is economically feasible. Construction of any such road shall not begin until the location and construction of such industry is assured and contracts made between the industry and the local authority.
When a certificate of public convenience and necessity has been filed with the Director of the Mississippi State Highway Commission as herein required, the highway commission shall proceed to locate, survey and have constructed such link or highway or public road in such quality and standards as may be found to adequately serve such proposed industry.
The Mississippi Department of Economic Development shall not select or designate any link of public road or highway more than ten (10) miles long to connect any industrial site, harbor or port facility with any existing public road or highway, nor shall such board designate or select any link or links of road in an excess of a total of two hundred (200) miles of highways or public roads.
Any highway or public road selected, designated and constructed under the provisions of this section shall be constructed from the highway fund within which highway district such highway or road has been selected, designated and constructed.
The provisions of this section shall not be construed to alter, change or amend any other statutes of the State of Mississippi designating highways, state-aid roads or other public roads, and any limitations placed upon the total miles of such highways, state-aid roads, or public roads shall not be affected by the provisions of this section.