Georgia

[Tom958]

But I finally got this monstrosity removed about 5 years of requests:
Road and gantry incongruent, got it adjusted- bottom pic:

Wow, I'm impressed! I talked them into replacing an entire overhead assembly, but that was thirty years ago.

[RoadPelican]

The Georgia Legislature passed a Transportation Bill a few years ago (around 2014 or 2015),in that if you stay in any hotel in Georgia you have to pay an extra $5 a night in taxes.  Which I think is more than fair and it will lead to better revenue than tolls.

[adventurernumber1]

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to take some pictures of the ongoing construction at I-75's Exit 326 (Carbondale Rd.), south of Dalton, GA. They have gotten a lot of progress done, and there are indeed some roundabouts (traffic circles) there. Here are the photos:




This is US 41 North right before reaching the roundabout at Carbondale Road.

US 41 reaching the traffic circle:






Going through the roundabout to get onto Carbondale Rd. Westbound:




Carbondale Road looking west at the newly-built roundabout and the bridge over the interstate, about to turn right on the on-ramp to I-75 North:




The on-ramp to Interstate 75 Northbound:



Note: There are three traffic circles that have been (or are being) constructed on the exit - one at the Carbondale Rd./US 41 intersection, and two with Carbondale Rd. and the ramps to/from I-75 - one for each respective set on each side of the overpass - but I had only gotten pictures of two, due to the fact that it was not in our driving route.





These next pictures are from near and at I-75's Exit 320 (GA SR 136), which was redone (and completed) a few years back, but I still posted these for fun, since I had taken them on the same trip as the pictures above in my post.



This is on the off-ramp to GA 136 from I-75 North.




Georgia Highway 136 Eastbound just east of the exit; the sign for the Flying J/Denny's on the exit can also be partly seen in the far right edge of the photo.




GA SH 136 East right before reaching the intersection with US 41 (at which GA 136 then becomes concurrent with US 41 going north for an extremely brief segment).




A closeup of the signage right at the intersection, with a railroad also in the background.

[Tomahawkin]

IMO 75 needs to be 8-10 lanes from Chattanooga to the 575 interchange. 75 is hell because of all the truck traffic and summer vacation traffic is worse. I have proposed making it a toll road North outside of Barrow county to fund this. A 50 cent/dollar toll would do wonders. GA needs to be proactive in tolling snowbird traffic instead of reactive. The current toll lanes only get the locals who have to commute daily.

[adventurernumber1]

I actually had another opportunity to go through the Carbondale Road exit today, but this time while on I-75 the whole time. Here are some pictures of the exit construction from that point of view (Interstate 75 Northbound):













These pictures were all taken extremely close together (so they aren't much varied), but they pretty much capture what the exit looks like while on I-75 North right before reaching the underpass.

[Gnutella]

Nashville has had some very crooked sign gantries as well, mostly those attached to overpasses. The crookedest one I remember seeing was north of downtown Nashville, where I-24 eastbound and I-65 southbound split.

[afguy]

INTERSTATE 75/INTERSTATE 16 INTERCHANGE REBUILD
Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

[adventurernumber1]

INTERSTATE 75/INTERSTATE 16 INTERCHANGE REBUILD
Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

Macon by brandon walker, on Flickr

That looks amazing so far. I find it especially fascinating how there is a tree, house, people, and clouds engraved in that particular section of that concrete wall. 

[afguy]

"They lived a great life, but we are talking about the mid-1960s' when they were built," said Kyle Collins. "65,000 to 70,000 cars travel this area through any given day. Having those additional lanes from to two to three; having those inside and outside shoulders are just going to make safer operations all around."

Part of I-20 is getting a significant upgrade. Both sides of the highway from exit 200 to exit one will have three lanes instead of two, and the roads will be widened. For one driver, the project makes his job easier.

"It gives us more room to pass cars and especially the wide load guys," explained James Lashley. "They will have a lot more room to maneuver around the small bridges. It will help us out in the long run."

The roadway is Lashley's life. He told NewsChannel 6 reporter Devin Johnson, GDOT and SCDOT working together to rebuild the bridge will benefit those who use the roads for work, as well as the people who live in the area.

"That's how we get the product to the customers," said Lashley. "If the roads aren't maintained, it's hard to get stuff from point A to point B."

https://www.wjbf.com/csra-traffic/massive-i-20-project-kicks-off/1717298981

[adventurernumber1]

"They lived a great life, but we are talking about the mid-1960s' when they were built," said Kyle Collins. "65,000 to 70,000 cars travel this area through any given day. Having those additional lanes from to two to three; having those inside and outside shoulders are just going to make safer operations all around."

Part of I-20 is getting a significant upgrade. Both sides of the highway from exit 200 to exit one will have three lanes instead of two, and the roads will be widened. For one driver, the project makes his job easier.

"It gives us more room to pass cars and especially the wide load guys," explained James Lashley. "They will have a lot more room to maneuver around the small bridges. It will help us out in the long run."

The roadway is Lashley's life. He told NewsChannel 6 reporter Devin Johnson, GDOT and SCDOT working together to rebuild the bridge will benefit those who use the roads for work, as well as the people who live in the area.

"That's how we get the product to the customers," said Lashley. "If the roads aren't maintained, it's hard to get stuff from point A to point B."

https://www.wjbf.com/csra-traffic/massive-i-20-project-kicks-off/1717298981

Taken on a trip to Charleston, SC in June of 2017, here are some pictures of what Interstate 20 in the area directly near (and going across) the South Carolina/Georgia border, in both directions, has looked like recently before they start construction on this project - this can serve as something to compare to whatever the final product will look like (which I am excited to see once finished).


Going Westbound:










Going Eastbound:

[afguy]

Looks like the Ports Authority is going ahead with an new bridge, instead of raising the old one. This project will by far be the biggest transportation project in the history of Savannah. According to Griff Lynch, a new bridge will be needed before the end of the next decade. I wouldn't be surprised if they floated a combination of bonds and tolls to help pay for the new bridge.

Griff Lynch, the head of the Georgia Ports Authority, told lawmakers Wednesday that planning is underway to replace the bridge in roughly a decade. He's floated this idea for months, saying it's essential to help the booming Savannah port to attract the ever-growing container ships that need more clearance. "We'll be talking about this in the years to come — it's probably about $1 billion in cost,"  Lynch told legislators. "If you'd like the ports to continue to be what they are now, this is something we're going to have to figure out."  

https://www.ajc.com/blog/politics/one-way-solve-the-talmadge-bridge-controversy-build-new-one/X3ey4LtPhzrexWHuAmeHwN/

[afguy]

The new interchange would be between SR 155 and Bill Gardner Pkwy.
I-75/Bethlehem Rd Interchange-Henry County by brandon walker, on Flickr

I-75/Bethlehem Rd Interchange-Henry County by brandon walker, on Flickr

To date, all project activities have been funded with Henry County SPLOST IV dollars. Expenditures to date total $238,673 covering the interchange feasibility study and interchange justification report. Remaining funds of $5.2 million are sufficient to cover preliminary engineering and the environmental impact study.

The design process will take two to three years. When the environmental report has been completed, it will be submitted to FHWA before Henry County can receive a final approval to build the new exit.

Right of way acquisition could start in 2021-2022 and take about two years to complete. Construction is tentatively planned to start by 2025 with the new exit open by 2028. Henry County is working with Georgia DOT and the Atlanta Regional Commission to secure state and federal funding to cover right of way and construction. Total project costs are estimated at $40-50 million.

https://movinghenryforward.org/2018/11/26/bethlehem-road-ijr-approved-by-federal-highway-administration/

[afguy]

The Savannah city council is requesting that GDOT take over maintenance of the Truman, Veterans and Jimmy DeLoach Parkways. With the former routes, if GDOT does take over maintenance, I wonder if they will attach state route numbers or will they try to go with interstate designations. With the later, GDOT will definitely attach a state route number.

GDOT Maintenance of Limited Access Highways: The City requests that the Georgia Department of Transportation take over
maintenance of the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway, the Truman Parkway and Veterans Parkway

http://agenda.savannahga.gov/content/files/2019-state-legislative-agenda-rev.pdf

[Eth]

The Savannah city council is requesting that GDOT take over maintenance of the Truman, Veterans and Jimmy DeLoach Parkways. With the former routes, if GDOT does take over maintenance, I wonder if they will attach state route numbers or will they try to go with interstate designations. With the later, GDOT will definitely attach a state route number.

GDOT Maintenance of Limited Access Highways: The City requests that the Georgia Department of Transportation take over
maintenance of the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway, the Truman Parkway and Veterans Parkway

http://agenda.savannahga.gov/content/files/2019-state-legislative-agenda-rev.pdf

The limited-access portion of Jimmy DeLoach Pkwy is already GA 21 Alt and has been signed as such since 2017 (not that I need to tell you that, since you yourself have posted photos of it in this thread), so I'm not sure what that's supposed to be about.

Truman Pkwy doesn't connect to another Interstate, so unless they decide to pull a North Carolina and call it a southern I-97 or something, no I-number there. A rerouting of GA 204 (and truncation of 204 Spur) wouldn't surprise me.

I-516 could perhaps be rerouted down Veterans Pkwy, with the current end reverting to just GA 21. More likely they'd just call it either GA 21 Conn or GA 204 Conn, though.

[afguy]

The Savannah city council is requesting that GDOT take over maintenance of the Truman, Veterans and Jimmy DeLoach Parkways. With the former routes, if GDOT does take over maintenance, I wonder if they will attach state route numbers or will they try to go with interstate designations. With the later, GDOT will definitely attach a state route number.

GDOT Maintenance of Limited Access Highways: The City requests that the Georgia Department of Transportation take over
maintenance of the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway, the Truman Parkway and Veterans Parkway

http://agenda.savannahga.gov/content/files/2019-state-legislative-agenda-rev.pdf

The limited-access portion of Jimmy DeLoach Pkwy is already GA 21 Alt and has been signed as such since 2017 (not that I need to tell you that, since you yourself have posted photos of it in this thread), so I'm not sure what that's supposed to be about.

Truman Pkwy doesn't connect to another Interstate, so unless they decide to pull a North Carolina and call it a southern I-97 or something, no I-number there. A rerouting of GA 204 (and truncation of 204 Spur) wouldn't surprise me.

I-516 could perhaps be rerouted down Veterans Pkwy, with the current end reverting to just GA 21. More likely they'd just call it either GA 21 Conn or GA 204 Conn, though.

Your outcome is the most likely, I could see GDOT extending the SR 21 ALT designation to all of the Jimmy DeLoach Parkway. With the Truman Parkway, I could see GDOT doing a swap. They reroute SR 204 to cover all of Truman Parkway and turn over maintenance of Abercorn to the city. With Veterans Parkway, it becomes tricky. GDOT could, although highly unlikely, extend the 516 designation to Veterans Parkway or they may just put a new state route designation on it.

[Gnutella]

This past weekend, I noticed that sign gantries are up on GA 316 near the GA 81 interchange that's currently under construction. The gantries at the off-ramps will be full-width, while the rest will be on your standard, non-cantilevered GDOT gantries at the side of the highway. There are only two gantries eastbound, at half a mile and the future eastbound off-ramp, but there are three gantries westbound, for some reason. One is at half a mile, and one is at the future westbound off-ramp, but one is in between those two. They're not going to put a quarter-mile sign up, are they?

I also noticed on a drive to Gainesville last week that the winding two-lane segment of U.S. 129 between I-85 and I-985 is now being widened to four lanes. Hallelujah.

[afguy]

GDOT needs to go ahead and just make this a limited-access facility...

The Rome contingent was unanimous in their praise for a slight realignment that uses roundabouts at intersections to allow for arterial road-style access.


"There are no stoplights,"  said Ken Wright, director of business and industry services at the Rome Floyd Chamber. "If you want to continue on without stopping, you can."

Todd Barker, consultant manager for GDOT, said they've refined the design since public hearings last year left open the question of limited access - favored in Floyd for the speed - versus controlled access, seen in Bartow as the key to new development. The new plans address both needs.

Floyd County's special project manager, Bruce Ivey, said there are just three roundabouts between U.S. 411 and I-75, "which will aid in the flow of traffic."  Rome City Manager Sammy Rich agreed.

"That's what a lot of our folks have been concerned about,"  Rich said.

http://www.northwestgeorgianews.com/rome/news/local/changes-to-i--link-unveiled/article_532da278-28dd-11e9-903f-93a9f48b2ddc.html

[Eth]

The routings of US 19 and US 29 indicated by those signs were correct up through about 1985 (1985 GDOT map — 2 MB). The signs on I-75/85 are no more than a decade old and are simply carbon copies of the old ones that were there.

[US 89]

The routings of US 19 and US 29 indicated by those signs were correct up through about 1985 (1985 GDOT map – 2 MB). The signs on I-75/85 are no more than a decade old and are simply carbon copies of the old ones that were there.

Cool. That makes me even more curious though: the first set of signs on the exit ramp states "NORTH 29, TO 19/78". Does that mean 19 was rerouted before 29 was, and those signs were put up during a brief period when that was the case?

Also interesting that there's no mention at all of US 278.

[Eth]

The routings of US 19 and US 29 indicated by those signs were correct up through about 1985 (1985 GDOT map — 2 MB). The signs on I-75/85 are no more than a decade old and are simply carbon copies of the old ones that were there.

Cool. That makes me even more curious though: the first set of signs on the exit ramp states "NORTH 29, TO 19/78". Does that mean 19 was rerouted before 29 was, and those signs were put up during a brief period when that was the case?

Also interesting that there's no mention at all of US 278.

GDOT's 1986 map shows both 19 and 29 on the current alignment with 41 on Northside Dr, so if there ever was such a time, it would have to have been for just a few months.

The omission of US 278 I can't explain; it's been there on the current routing since 1955.

[afguy]

TSPLOST 2.0 will go before voters in May 2020 for the CSRA.

On Tuesday, representatives from the 13 counties known as the Central Savannah River Area district elected officers to a committee that will select the road, bridge, pedestrian, transit and freight projects to be funded by the next Transportation Investment Act sales tax.

In 2012, the region was one of just three statewide to pass the 1-percent sales tax created by the Georgia Legislature in 2010. Richmond County voters passed the tax with 58 percent support, while a majority of Columbia County voters did not approve it. Last year, voters in 18 south-central Georgia counties agreed to create a new South Georgia district, and the tax has been collected in that region since October.

The TIA is a 10-year tax to be collected in the CSRA region from 2013 through 2022, bringing the local sales tax rate to 8 percent.

Organizers are looking to put the region's second slate of TIA projects before voters in May 2020, said Andy Crosson, the executive director of the CSRA Regional Commission, which has facilitated TIA meetings and educational programs since the tax began.

https://www.augustachronicle.com/news/20190216/committee-forms-to-develop-next-transportation-sales-tax-package

[afguy]

T-SPLOST for Dougherty County goes before voters on March 19th.

The city and Dougherty County commissions have both approved an intergovernmental agreement that will put a 1 percent T-SPLOST referendum before county voters on March 19. If approved, moneys collected – projected to be $80 million over the five years of the special tax – would go a long way toward addressing some of the issues facing officials with both governments.

"One of the things that came from our very positive negotiations with the county (on the language of the proposed referendum, project list and fund allocation) was the understanding that we both have the same concerns,"  the city manager said. "When there are sewer spills that make their way into the Flint River, when there are potholes on city or county streets that beat up people's vehicles, citizens don't care about any kind of boundaries. They are all concerned because these things impact them.

"Both the city and county leaders agreed that there are projects where we can pool our resources and realize an economy of scale that may allow us both to get lower prices when we're bidding projects. This has given us an opportunity to work together, and that's important because our citizens don't care if a road is in the city, the county or is a state road. They just want them fixed."

Subadan said the project list agreed upon by city and county leaders takes into account the greatest transportation-related needs in the city and county. On that list are road paving and improvements, sidewalks, alley paving, trails, and roadway markings and striping.

https://www.albanyherald.com/news/local/subadan-t-splost-would-fund-need-to-have-projects/article_73d968d7-e2c0-566b-b1fc-8babc563e742.html

PDF file on Dougherty County T-SPLOST projects:http://dougherty.ga.us/filestorage/1800/379008/T-SPLOST_TRI-FOLD_1_no_%25.pdf

[Tom958]

I also noticed on a drive to Gainesville last week that the winding two-lane segment of U.S. 129 between I-85 and I-985 is now being widened to four lanes. Hallelujah.

I stopped to photograph a 1940 bridge that'll be demolished and replaced for the project. To my delight, I discovered that there was another bridge further to the west, very similar in design to the 1940 bridge. It might've once been used for private purposes, but it's long abandoned now.

[hotdogPi]

I think I found a way to relieve traffic in the Atlanta area:

Residential areas in the suburbs were intentionally designed not to connect. If they connected, there would be less traffic on the busy roads.

[afguy]

Another DDI is coming to Georgia, this time at I-20/Panola Rd
I-20/Panola Rd Interchange Reconstruction-Stonecrest by brandon walker, on Flickr