Georgia

[Tom958]

Another DDI is coming to Georgia, this time at I-20/Panola Rd

Six lanes on the eastbound offramp! Three for left turns, three for right!

[Buck87]

Another DDI is coming to Georgia, this time at I-20/Panola Rd

Nice, any idea what the time frame is for construction?

Further east on I-20 is the planned reconstruction of the GA 138 interchange in Conyers, which according to this article is now going to be an SPUI with an estimated start date of 2022: https://www.rockdalenewtoncitizen.com/news/local/details-emerging-on-hwy-bridge-reconstruction/article_cc780081-c82e-5824-8e04-07b6e6a6d163.html

[afguy]

Another DDI is coming to Georgia, this time at I-20/Panola Rd

Nice, any idea what the time frame is for construction?

Further east on I-20 is the planned reconstruction of the GA 138 interchange in Conyers, which according to this article is now going to be an SPUI with an estimated start date of 2022: https://www.rockdalenewtoncitizen.com/news/local/details-emerging-on-hwy-bridge-reconstruction/article_cc780081-c82e-5824-8e04-07b6e6a6d163.html

From what  I've seen on GDOT's website, the Panola Rd interchange project will start in 2027. BTW, below is a diagram of the new SPUI planned for the I-20/SR 138 interchange.
I-20/SR138 SPUI-Conyers by brandon walker, on Flickr

[Tomahawkin]

I hope GDOT Reads these pages but after driving from Johns Creek to Suwanee, there is some serious improvement needed at SR 317 and IH 85. That area has been a cluster#### for over a decade. More lanes and a DDI Is seriously needed there especially with all the truck traffic since there is a SEFL Freight hub nearby

[Georgia]

new exit opens up today on I-85 in Coweta County for Piedmont Newnan Hospital Road

i didnt get any good pics today but i will try and grab some Thursday

[Avalanchez71]

What is a DDI?

[hotdogPi]

What is a DDI?

Diverging diamond interchange

[Gnutella]

Overall, I'm not impressed with diverging-diamond interchanges. Traffic on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth was pretty bad before the I-85 interchange overhaul, but now it's even worse. It can take as much as 20 minutes to get from Satellite Boulevard to Club Drive on a normal weekday.

[Tomahawkin]

The only DDI I have seen where it has made an impact us the Wendy Hill Road interchange. The rest, especially Jimmy Carter and Ashford Dunwoody are just band aids on a bullet wound. But its about all that they can do...

[Bobby5280]

DDI's offer little to no benefit over a standard diamond interchange if the surface street intersecting the freeway has high traffic counts. Through traffic on the surface street is still stuck having to wade through two traffic lights on either side of the freeway. Worse yet, the criss-cross action of lanes for through traffic creates its own bottleneck effect. You can't have both movements of traffic on the surface street going through the interchange at the same time.

Basically a DDI is a poor man's SPUI. For a busy surface street crossing a freeway a SPUI is a vastly superior choice, thanks to only one traffic signal and the ability to allow both directions of traffic on the surface street to move through at the same time. Unfortunately SPUI's tend to be more costly to build than a DDI, especially if the SPUI has the surface street crossing over the freeway.

[Tomahawkin]

That last post is on point. The amount of truck traffic doesn't help the DDI @Jimmy Carter Blvd. And you are right G-Dot goes cheap and uses the DDI as a temporary fix. I was hoping that they would gut the bridge there as well as the Plesant hill bridge...

[US 89]

I don't really understand GDOT at all when it comes to US Highway signage. Neither US 19 or 29 is directly accessed from here, so it really should be "TO 19/29". And in addition, those routes are both concurrent with US 41, which doesn't get a mention.

They do a similar 19/29 thing at Spring Street downtown, as I've mentioned elsewhere in this thread.

[roadman65]

I don't really understand GDOT at all when it comes to US Highway signage. Neither US 19 or 29 is directly accessed from here, so it really should be "TO 19/29". And in addition, those routes are both concurrent with US 41, which doesn't get a mention.

They do a similar 19/29 thing at Spring Street downtown, as I've mentioned elsewhere in this thread.

Go to Waycross and you will find that US 23 Business (concurrent with US 1 Business) is only signed outside the Waycross City Limits while inside the city only US 1 Business is signed.

Georgia is strange but at least for the most part trailbazing on the US routes proper is better signed than their state route counterparts.

[architect77]

I am sending a plea to every member of GDOT's Board members to start making aesthetics a priority for the massive rivers of concrete they are creating along Atlanta's freeways. They need to use as few sign supports as possible to reduce visual clutter, and how about some landscaping between the express lanes that they're planning for GA400?

If they continue unchanged, Atlanta will not have any attractive aspect whatsoever on its freeways, like what they did to I-85 through Gwinnett and I-75 through Cobb, easily one of the ugliest express lane endeavors in the country.

If you agree with me, please contact them also. Thx.

MASTER by Stephen Edwards, on Flickr
IMG_0703 by Stephen Edwards, on Flickr

[NE2]

[MNHighwayMan]

This looks like the work of a madman, even if the argument is sound.

Better as bacon, anyway.

[Gnutella]

I don't really understand GDOT at all when it comes to US Highway signage. Neither US 19 or 29 is directly accessed from here, so it really should be "TO 19/29". And in addition, those routes are both concurrent with US 41, which doesn't get a mention.

They do a similar 19/29 thing at Spring Street downtown, as I've mentioned elsewhere in this thread.

Georgia does a poor job of signing secondary highways. I recently drove U.S. 29 from Pensacola, FL to Newnan, and I never lost my way in either Florida or Alabama. Once I got back into Georgia, however, I missed a turn in LaGrange, and ended up driving for a few miles on U.S. 27 northbound before doubling back. It turns out that they had one dinky sign posted for U.S. 29 to turn.

[afguy]

I recently went on a trip to Savannah and snapped some photos of the I-16/I-75 interchange project.
Interstate 75 by brandon walker, on Flickr

Interstate 75 by brandon walker, on Flickr

Interstate 75 by brandon walker, on Flickr

Interstate 75 by brandon walker, on Flickr

Insterstate 75 by brandon walker, on Flickr

[Tom958]

https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=24991.0

[Gnutella]

GA 316 NEWS

Construction of the GA 81 interchange is steady as it goes. Land is now being graded for the eastbound on-ramp, and a retaining wall is now being built on the eastbound side at the location of the overpass. My guess is that the westbound on-ramp and eastbound off-ramp will be constructed after the overpass is completed.

Further west, there are now orange signs that read "ROAD WORK NEXT 3 MILES" posted eastbound near the U.S. 29/Lawrenceville Highway intersection, and westbound near the Drowning Creek Road intersection. I also noticed just a couple of weeks ago that the Waffle House at the Harbins Road intersection is closed, and I found out it has been for about four months now, because Gwinnett County bought the property in preparation for construction of an interchange at the intersection. Apparently, construction of this interchange will be underway very soon, likely at the same time as new interchange construction at the GA 11 intersection.

Even further west, the right of way is being cleared of trees on the controlled-access segment from Collins Hill Road to I-85. Most of the clearing so far has been on the westbound side, but they've recently started clearing on the eastbound side as well. Also, concrete slabs are being replaced eastbound between GA 120 and Collins Hill Road, involving single-lane closures during nighttime hours on the weekends.

One problem that needs to be rectified very soon is the elimination of signalized intersections adjacent to some of the new interchanges. Overpasses need to be built at Hi-Hope Road and Carl-Bethlehem Road. A few months ago, there was a fatal accident on GA 316 eastbound when traffic passing through the GA 20/GA 124 interchange crashed into the queue of traffic stopped at the traffic signal for Hi-Hope Road. This was avoidable. Besides, a simple overpass is easier and less expensive than an interchange.

A newly emerging problem is increasing traffic at the unsignalized Harry McCarty Road intersection. With all the new commercial development between GA 81 and GA 11, many vehicles are now using Harry McCarty Road for access between GA 316 and the new development in order to avoid the interchange construction zone at GA 81. Making matters even more dangerous is that this intersection is hidden from traffic on GA 316 westbound, just beyond a curve. I fear it's only a matter of time before a severe or fatal crash happens there.

[afguy]

In the draft for the 2045 long range transportation plan for Chatham County, the Metro Planning Commission is setting aside $450,000 for a study that will determine if an interchange is feasible at Quacco Rd and I-95. From what I understand the proposed interchange would be similar to the Schomburg/Blackmon Rd interchange off of J.R. Allen Pkwy in Columbus. Personally, I think an interchange is needed, especially in light of all the of the growth coming to the south end of Pooler Pkwy and Southwest Chatham in general. Below is a link to the draft 2045 plan:https://www.thempc.org/docs/lit/Core...TP2045Full.pdf

[afguy]

The new interchange at Gravel Springs Rd and I-85 could be under construction soon.

The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday to accept just over $20 million in federal and state grants to pay for construction of the interchange, which is strategically positioned midway between the oft-congested Ga. 20 and Hamilton Mill Road access points. The commission then awarded the construction contract to E.R. Snell Contractors.

https://www.ajc.com/news/local/that-new-interchange-near-buford-could-under-construction-soon/XVvM8aFPGUo9MRGIMxCLWK/

[afguy]

I-16/CHATHAM PARKWAY EASTBOUND RAMP RECONGFIGURATION
I-16/Chatham Pkwy Interchange-Savannah by brandon walker, on Flickr
The Proposed project would reconfigure the I-16 Eastbound exit ramp at Chatham Parkway from a
two-lane approach to a four-lane approach adding 1 additional left turn and 1 additional right turn lane.
The project also proposes to widen the channelized right turn lane from Chatham Parkway to I-16 EB
on ramp, reconfigure the existing signal, and add pedestrian crosswalks, and wheelchair ramps.

[afguy]

The Savannah Metropolitan Planning Commission had a public meeting regarding the future of the I-95/Airways Ave/Pooler Pkwy Interchange. Of the four proposals presented, the only I like most was the plan for the flyover ramp from I-95 to Pooler Pkwy. It may be the costliest, but it will have a long-term benefit and will actually improve traffic flow. As for it making access for pedestrian difficult, I rarely see people walking in the area and if they are, its usually from the hotels to the outlet mall.

While not yet complete, Mark Wilkes, Coastal Region Metropolitan Planning Organization project manager, said the study has narrowed down the potential options to four.

A flyover interchange for cars exiting Interstate 95 onto Pooler Parkway, the most costly option at a projected cost of $44 million, would provide a long term solution to growing traffic demands in the area, would not require widening the bridge, and eliminate left turns in the area, freeing up movement into and out of the airport.

However, this option's costly and complicated construction could lead to traffic delays and would make it more difficult for pedestrian movement in the area, according to the presentation.

Another option presented on Wednesday was a single-point urban interchange that would have similar disadvantages to the flyover interchange.

At a projected cost of $35.7 million, the interchange would bring fewer traffic conflict points than a diamond interchange and would provide more distance between the I-95 southbound ramp and Mill Creek Circle to the west, an issue highlighted in the study.

At $9.6 million, the least expensive option, Pooler Parkway would be turned into a diverging diamond interchange, similar to Ga. 21′s interchange with I-95.

https://www.savannahnow.com/news/20190814/chatham-savannah-mpc-presents-pooler-parkway-i-95-interchange-replacement-options

[The Ghostbuster]

Despite converting the Interstates to mileage-based exit numbers in 2000, SR-400 and the Albany bypass still have sequential exit numbers. I assume there are no plans to convert either road to mileage-based exit numbers. The Albany bypass could keep the numbers as-is, but I really think GA-400 should convert to mile-based.