Georgia

[NE2]

How is "a new 6-cents-per-gallon local excise tax on gasoline" not a tax? Thanks, liberal media!

[afone]

Major features of the project include a new on-ramp to the northbound perimeter aligned with Barnett Shoals Road, additional lanes on Lexington Road in the area of the perimeter, and elimination of the left-turn option from westbound Lexington Road to the northbound lanes of the perimeter.

http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2015-01-29/proposed-dot-plan-would-ease-congestion-lexington-road-interchange-athens

[Tom958]

Also, is anybody else in favor of reconfiguring the Old Hull Road/U.S. 29 interchanges so the Perimeter doesn't have to exit itself? I think that'd be a worthwhile project.

Yes, almost any good roadgeek would. The thing is, though, that it'd likely be very expensive to make the Perimeter into the mainline, even with a 55mph design speed. I think that the topography would be a challenge, too. It'd be a good project for our interchange redesign bunnies.

Is there any actual congestion there, or an excessive accident rate? 

[xcellntbuy]

I heard on the radio earlier this week that several speed zones throughout the state are being increased.  I drove through the Macon section of Interstate 75 and found the 65 mph zone is now 70 mph (although the state missed a 65 mph sign just north of the Interstate 475 split at Exit 156) and the 55 mph zone closer to the city center near Interstate 16 is a speed limit of 60 mph.

The signs were all numbered patches.

Many of the speed limit changes were in the process of being upgraded in metro Atlanta, as well.

[dfwtbear]

Many of the speed limit changes were in the process of being upgraded in metro Atlanta, as well.

Here is an article and video on the Atlanta area speed limit changes:
http://www.11alive.com/story/news/traffic/commuter-dude/2015/01/20/faster-speed-limits-in-place-across-metro-atlanta/22062903/

[lordsutch]

I heard on the radio earlier this week that several speed zones throughout the state are being increased.  I drove through the Macon section of Interstate 75 and found the 65 mph zone is now 70 mph (although the state missed a 65 mph sign just north of the Interstate 475 split at Exit 156) and the 55 mph zone closer to the city center near Interstate 16 is a speed limit of 60 mph.

The signs were all numbered patches.

Some of the signs were actually replaced, particularly the 70 mph ones. However, all they did was replace existing signs, so you can still go several miles on I-475 and I-75, including past multiple exits, without being informed what the correct speed limit is (contra the MUTCD). Nor did they install any advance warning of the speed limit drops.

Plus they screwed up and made I-75 northbound 70 mph all the way past US 80 (which is what their press people told the local media in Macon) but posted 60 mph southbound to US 41/GA 247 south.

I-16 was also increased to 65 mph from MM 0 to MM 2 (the former 55 mph zone), and then 70 mph from MM 2 to the Bibb County line (former 65 zone). I-475 is now 70 mph end-to-end, as is I-75 through Forsyth.

As for I-75 Atlanta-ward, at least last week I-75 NB was still dropping to 55 mph at Holiday Blvd in Clayton County, and then jumping back up to 65 mph just inside the perimeter - again, with no intervening speed limit signs, despite several interchanges.

[xcellntbuy]

Thank you both.  I hope the speed limit increases on Interstate 20 east of Interstate 285/Atlanta Bypass on the eastern side of the Atlanta metro area.  It may be posted at 55 mph, but traffic rarely drops below 70 mph to the east (6-8 lanes) or below 65 mph to the west into downtown Atlanta (8-10 lanes).

[lordsutch]

Thank you both.  I hope the speed limit increases on Interstate 20 east of Interstate 285/Atlanta Bypass on the eastern side of the Atlanta metro area.  It may be posted at 55 mph, but traffic rarely drops below 70 mph to the east (6-8 lanes) or below 65 mph to the west into downtown Atlanta (8-10 lanes).

According to the link, I-20 will go to 65 mph east of Candler Road (GA 151) to the DeKalb/Rockdale line, and then 70 mph throughout Rockdale County.

[Eth]

I saw these new increased speed limits today on I-75 north of Howell Mill, as the article mentioned.

As currently implemented, on I-75 southbound near Windy Hill, drivers are greeted with a "Reduced Speed Ahead" notification, followed by (directly across from each other) a SPEED LIMIT 65 sign on the left side and a SPEED LIMIT 55 sign on the right side. Good thing everyone already does 70 right there anyway, so there should be no problems.

According to the link, I-20 will go to 65 mph east of Candler Road (GA 151) to the DeKalb/Rockdale line, and then 70 mph throughout Rockdale County.

If I'm reading it correctly, it actually looks it will jump to 70 mph at Snapfinger Creek, which is about halfway between the Wesley Chapel and Panola Road exits.

[Gnutella]

How is "a new 6-cents-per-gallon local excise tax on gasoline" not a tax? Thanks, liberal media!

Excise tax increase on gasoline...isn't that what Pennsylvania did about a year and a half ago? If it is, then gas prices in Georgia will increase.

Major features of the project include a new on-ramp to the northbound perimeter aligned with Barnett Shoals Road, additional lanes on Lexington Road in the area of the perimeter, and elimination of the left-turn option from westbound Lexington Road to the northbound lanes of the perimeter.

http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2015-01-29/proposed-dot-plan-would-ease-congestion-lexington-road-interchange-athens

Ohhh shit! HALLELUJAH!

That's the interchange I use the most, and I hate hate HATE the way traffic piles into the left lane on Lexington Road westbound past Winterville Road. You have three left turns in the span of a quarter of a mile: Barnett Shoals Road and the two Perimeter on-ramps. And the left-turn lane for the "outer" (northbound) Perimeter is only about 100 feet beyond the left-turn lane for Barnett Shoals Road, which means that it's too short to handle the traffic it gets. As a result, traffic heading for the "outer" Perimeter often backs up into the intersection between Lexington Road and Barnett Shoals Road, and even clear into the left westbound lane on Lexington sometimes if there's more than one 18-wheeler in line.

Another big problem with that intersection is that all traffic on the "outer" off-ramp has to use Lexington Road to get to Barnett Shoals Road, which not only requires Barnett Shoals-bound traffic to pass through two traffic signals in only about 100 feet, but also dumps it in with traffic staying on Lexington Road, which means that if there's even one car in the right lane on Lexington Road eastbound that's waiting at a red light and not turning onto Barnett Shoals Road, then nobody can. As a result, there's always a big tangle of traffic at the end of the off-ramp. What they need there is a separate lane to take traffic from the off-ramp directly to Barnett Shoals without having to deal with any traffic signals.

The new "outer" on-ramp and my idea for a separate lane from the "outer" off-ramp to Barnett Shoals Road will instantly make traffic near the interchange more manageable.

[lordsutch]

How is "a new 6-cents-per-gallon local excise tax on gasoline" not a tax? Thanks, liberal media!

Excise tax increase on gasoline...isn't that what Pennsylvania did about a year and a half ago? If it is, then gas prices in Georgia will increase.

My understanding is that the legislature plans to replace the SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, a local sales tax that is imposed on everything) on gasoline with this excise tax when the SPLOSTs expire. So it should be largely neutral in terms of gasoline taxation, at least based on current gas prices, but the local governments will not make as much from the SPLOST in the future if they vote to extend it (which almost always happens), since future SPLOSTs, like other sales taxes, will no longer apply to gasoline.

[Tom958]

Major features of the project include a new on-ramp to the northbound perimeter aligned with Barnett Shoals Road, additional lanes on Lexington Road in the area of the perimeter, and elimination of the left-turn option from westbound Lexington Road to the northbound lanes of the perimeter.

http://onlineathens.com/breaking-news/2015-01-29/proposed-dot-plan-would-ease-congestion-lexington-road-interchange-athens

Ohhh shit! HALLELUJAH!

That's the interchange I use the most, and I hate hate HATE the way traffic piles into the left lane on Lexington Road westbound past Winterville Road. You have three left turns in the span of a quarter of a mile: Barnett Shoals Road and the two Perimeter on-ramps. And the left-turn lane for the "outer" (northbound) Perimeter is only about 100 feet beyond the left-turn lane for Barnett Shoals Road, which means that it's too short to handle the traffic it gets. As a result, traffic heading for the "outer" Perimeter often backs up into the intersection between Lexington Road and Barnett Shoals Road, and even clear into the left westbound lane on Lexington sometimes if there's more than one 18-wheeler in line.

Another big problem with that intersection is that all traffic on the "outer" off-ramp has to use Lexington Road to get to Barnett Shoals Road, which not only requires Barnett Shoals-bound traffic to pass through two traffic signals in only about 100 feet, but also dumps it in with traffic staying on Lexington Road, which means that if there's even one car in the right lane on Lexington Road eastbound that's waiting at a red light and not turning onto Barnett Shoals Road, then nobody can. As a result, there's always a big tangle of traffic at the end of the off-ramp. What they need there is a separate lane to take traffic from the off-ramp directly to Barnett Shoals without having to deal with any traffic signals.

The new "outer" on-ramp and my idea for a separate lane from the "outer" off-ramp to Barnett Shoals Road will instantly make traffic near the interchange more manageable.

I worked on that assisted living place on Barnett Shoals about a mile to the south, and field designed and built that funkadelic wheelchair ramp there. Yes, that intersection was a good one to avoid at rush hour.

Sounds like a lot of money for not much new stuff, and like it'll still leave the situation of the offramp dumping onto Lexington Road way too close to Barnett Shoals (that's even if they build your little ramp). I wish the reporter had taken a photo of the plan to go with the article. 

I imagined a multilane roundabout there. Wouldn't that have been a hoot? 

[afone]

The DDI at I-95/SR-21 goes out to bid this summer.
http://www.effinghamherald.net/section/1/article/29529/

[lordsutch]

Two new roundabouts in central Georgia have been (mostly) finished in the last month; GA 247 Connector in Byron by the new Peach County Medical Center (just west of I-75) and GA 74 at Lower Thomaston Road west of Macon. The US 80 roundabout at Holley Road west of Macon is also, slowly but surely, coming to fruition.

Not sure if it's a contractor error or yet another new wave of GDOT thinking, perhaps aping AHTD, but they signed the GA 247 Connector with "247C" in a Georgia shield, rather than with either a CONN banner (the more recent style) or tiny unreadable print in the shield (the old style). Hard to make out due to the light at the time I was taking photos, but here's an example: http://mapillary.com/map/im/Qqr5OERvNjyFdE93sU58-Q

[Tom958]

^^^Thanks, Lordsutch! Signing connector routes in a readable manner is ludicrously overdue. That said, in the case of GA 247, I'd prefer that they assigned it a proper number befitting its status as a short but important, mostly multilane route.

Yesterday I drove I-75 from Kennesaw to Atlanta for the first time in a while. It appears that all of the hammerhead piers for the reversible lanes that would be in this zoomed view of the GA 5 interchange are completed, and precast beams have been placed for two of the spans. I see little evidence of progress elsewhere on the two lane segment until the Windy Hill- I-285 area. They'res also some work started on the at-grade lane north of I-575.

My phone was dead, so I'll spare you my usual crappy photos.

[afone]

I was looking at few projects along I-85 at GDOT's website and it seems I-85N from Old Peachtree Road to the SC state line will be a giant construction zone for the next 15 years!

Here's a breakdown of the projects.
(Project I.D. 110600) First, the HOT lanes on I-85 will be extended, beginning this fall, from Old Peachtree to Hamilton Mill Road. New APL signs will be placed at the I-85/985 split. Here's some displays of what the project will look like:
http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard1.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard2.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard3.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard4.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard5.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard6.pdf,http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard7.pdf,  http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110600-/JPG/DisplayBoard%208.pdf

(Project I.D. 0012698)This project will add an interchange at S.R. 324 (Grave Springs Road). Work will begin in 2019.

(Project I.D. 110610)The next project will extend the HOT lanes along I-85 from Hamilton Mill Road to S.R. 211. It will begin in 2019.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110610-/Concept%20Report/110610-_CRAPPROVED.pdf

(Project I.D. 110620) This project will widen I-85 from S.R. 211 to S.R. 53, a distance of 3.3 miles, from 4 to 6 lanes. The project will cost $44 million and begin in 2021.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110620-/Concept%20Report/110620-_REVCR_Apr2008.pdf

(Project I.D. 110630) This project will widen I-85 from 4 to 6 lanes between S.R. 53 and U.S. 129/S.R. 11, a distance of 8 miles. Work will begin in 2020 and cost $76 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110630-/Concept%20Report/110630-_REVCR_FEB2013.pdf

(Project I.D. 110640)This project will widening I-85 from 4 to 6 lanes between S.R. 11 and S.R. 82, a distance of 3.7 miles. It will cost $40.8 million and begin construction in 2021.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110640-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110640-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110650)This project will begin in 2022 and widen I-85 between S.R. 82 and S.R. 98, a distance of 6 miles and at a cost of  $71.4 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110650-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110650-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110660)This project will begin in 2023 and widen I-85 between S.R. 98 and S.R. 15. It will cost $37.3 million
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110660-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110660-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110670)This project will begin in 2024. It will widen I-85 between U.S. 441 and S.R. 63, a distance of 4.5 miles. Total cost for this project is $72.3 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110670-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110670-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110680)This project will widen I-85 between S.R. 63 and S.R. 51, a distance of 6 miles. Construction will begin in 2025 and cost $73.6 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110680-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110680-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110690)This project will widen I-85 between S.R. 51 and S.R. 320, a distance of 4.4 miles. Construction starts in 2026 at a cost of $63 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110690-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110690-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110700)This project will widen I-85 between S.R. 320 and S.R. 17, a distance of 9.1 miles. Work will begin in 2027 at a cost of $129 million.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/110700-/Concept%20Report/Revisions/110700-_REV_Apr08.pdf

(Project I.D. 110710)This will be the final project along I-85, it begins at S.R. 17 and goes to the South Carolina state line. Construction will begin in 2028 at a cost of $108 million.
http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay01.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay02.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay03.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay04.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay05.pdf, http://por.dot.ga.gov/projectInfo/110710-/JPG/ConceptDisplay06.pdf


A bonus project, the Sugarloaf Parkway extension, Phase II and III. Phase II will be a freeway extension and is 8.3 miles long. It will extend from S.R. 316 to S.R. 20. It will cost $186 million. No date for construction has been set yet.
https://gtas.dot.ga.gov/0006924/Concept%20Report/0006924%20&%200006925_CR_MAY2013.pdf

Phase III will be a 4.1 mile freeway extension. It will run between S.R. 20 and Peachtree Industrial Blvd.  Total cost is $117 million.

[Tom958]

I was looking at few projects along I-85 at GDOT's website and it seems I-85N from Old Peachtree Road to the SC state line will be a giant construction zone for the next 15 years!

Wow, thanks! This stuff is far more interesting than I thought it would be. First stab at a tl;dr,(edit) starting with the rural widening northward from Hamilton Mill Road:

The overall concept is for an almost-full-standard six lane freeway with a concrete CSB, and with all existing pavement removed and replaced with concrete, like I-20 north of Augusta (the finished product will also resemble most of I-475, though IIRC the old pavement there was overlaid with asphalt rather than replaced with concrete). Typically, the existing right shoulder will need to be widened and in some cases milled down 4 1/2 inches or more and repaved for use as a construction detour.

Apparently GDOT's original intent was to widen directly to eight lanes (at least on the southern portions-- I haven't read everything yet) and to remove and replace the remaining legacy bridges over I-85. FHWA wouldn't go for that, though, so... The only design exception requested consistently is for reduced left shoulder width of 9'-10" under those bridges. Unsurprisingly, the traffic projections for the southernmost sections project that six lanes will operate at LOS F by 2021 or so.   

Another thing I wasn't aware of: The K factor standard for Interstate profiles was increased in 2004, and these widening/reconstuction  projects will bring the highway to current standards. This leads to a tidbit like this from FHWA:

"Please evaluate the option of raising SR 332 in the design phase (as opposed to lowering the Interstate profile)."

DUH, YA THINK?!?!?! 

If they're completely rebuilding the road anyway, I doubt that it makes much difference for either cost or constructablity. Maybe FHWA wants a cursory analysis for procedural reasons even though everyone already knows what the results will be.


More on this later...

[afone]

More project news, this time for the U.S. 411 connector:(Project I.D. 661950)
This 7.31 mile freeway will run from the U.S. 411/U.S. 41 intersection to  new interchange at I-75 and Old Grassdale Road. The project will start in 2019 and cost $157.8 million.
http://www.dot.ga.gov/projects/transpi/Pages/TransPi.aspx?ProjectID=661950-

http://johndruckenmiller.com/new-route-exit-for-411-connector-gains-speed-in-northwest-georgia/

[xcellntbuy]

It looks like the Georgia General Assembly found some money.

Interstate 75 south of Macon is getting very rough.  I do not know if it has been our recent cold spells in middle Georgia but, the concrete feels like a thousand steps and the asphalt sections show a lot of heavy wear, irrespective of 6-, 8- or 10 lanes.

[afone]

Xcellntbuy, I-75 was recently reconstructed in southern Houston and Dooly Counties. I agree with though that I-75 needs to be rebuilt in Peach County.

[xcellntbuy]

The Peach County area is one of the areas definitely in need.  Eight lanes would be a good idea, too!

[afone]

I know long term, GDOT does have plans to widen I-75 to eight lanes from Sardis Church to GA-247.

[xcellntbuy]

That particular area of Interstate 75 could certainly use two extra lanes.

[afone]

TRIP's annual report on the state of Georgia's roads: http://www.tripnet.org/docs/GA_Transportation_by_the_Numbers_TRIP_Report_Feb_2015.pdf

[lordsutch]

The US 80 roundabout at Holley Road west of Macon is also, slowly but surely, coming to fruition.

It's now mostly open, although the northern leg is still under construction to bring Holley Road up to the new grade.

Next up locally is either US 80 at Fulton Mill, which will be a multilane job since it's just east of where the four-lane section begins, or US 23 at GA 18 in Monroe County near Juliette and Plant Scherer.