Interstate 85 North - Duluth to Commerce

Ramps joining I-85 with Boggs Road tie into c/d roadways just north of SR 316. The I-85 mainline progresses north one mile to Exit 108 with Sugarloaf Parkway.

07/02/14

Formerly Exit 107, the parclo interchange with SR 120 was reconstructed as part of $37 million in road work between March 1998 and April 2001 to add c/d roadways. SR 120 (Duluth Highway) travels 90.7 miles overall between Tallapoosa and U.S. 29/SR 8 at Lawrenceville.

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Two auxiliary lanes run north along I-85 from the Boggs Road overpass to Exit 108 for Sugarloaf Parkway. Sugarloaf Parkway runs north to Peachtree Industrial Boulevard in east Duluth.

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Exit 108 departs I-85 north to join the adjacent c/d roadway below an on-ramp from SR 120 and Newpoint Parkway. Points of interest served by Exit 108 include the Gwinnett Fine Arts Center and the Gwinnett Civic and Cultural Center.

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Five lanes of I-85 continue north one mile to Exit 109 with Old Peachtree Road. Old Peactree Road serves the adjacent Huntcrest Business Park and Peachtree North Industrial Park areas.

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Sugarloaf Parkway arcs southeast by Sugarloaf Mills Mall to eventually encircle the city of Lawrenceville south of SR 316. The parkway originally ended at SR 20 (Grayson Highway). Construction by Gwinett County starting in December 2007 extended the limited access highway east in stages back to SR 316 between February 2, 2010 and December 11, 2012.

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The entrance ramp from SR 120 adds a sixth northbound lane to Exit 109. Old Peachtree Road takes a circuitous route east from U.S. 23/SR 13 (Buford Highway) in Duluth to meet I-85 as a four lane arterial.

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Old Peachtree Road curves east from Peachtree North Industrial Park to Northbrook Business Park. The road was supplanted by Northbrook Parkway to the east of I-85 as the through route north to east Suwanee.

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The original north end of the I-85 Express Lane was at milepost 110.

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I-85 advances along the east side of Shawnee Ridge Industrial Park.

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A diamond interchange (Exit 111) lies one mile ahead with SR 317 in the city of Suwanee by Horizon Techonlogy and Distribution Park.

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A lane drop occurs for I-85 north at Exit 111. Left Exit 113 follows at a wye interchange with Interstate 985 north.

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SR 317 runs north from Exit 111 along Lawrenceville Suwanee Road to end at U.S. 23/SR 13 (Buford Highway) in Suwanee. The arterial extends southward by a number of subdivisions to the commercialized intersection with SR 120 (Duluth Highway) at Lawrenceville.

07/02/14

A 24 mile long route to Lake Sidney Lanier and the Hall county seat of Gainesville, Interstate 985 branches northeast from Exit 113. I-985 is part of a longer expressway corridor taking U.S. 23/SR 365 north from Buford to Clarkesville and the outskirts of Toccoa.

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A northbound side rest area operated just ahead of the split with Interstate 985 until 2005. I-985 is a commuter freeway with mostly a rural four lane design.

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Lake Lanier spreads to the west of Gainesville and Flowery Branch along the Forsyth and Hall County line. Several roads head west from interchanges with I-985/U.S. 23 to the reservoir. Notably of those, SR 347 spurs west onto the Lake Lanier Islands from Exit 8.
The 37,000-acre lake was formed with the construction of Buford Dam on the Chattahoochee River in 1956.

07/02/14

Interstate 985 was designated in 1984 along a freeway built in the 1960s. U.S. 23 joins I-985 at Exit 4 as part of a four lane alignment leading north to Clayton and western North Carolina alongside U.S. 441.

07/02/14

Interstate 85 reduces to five overall lanes beyond Exit 113. Construction to extend the I-85 Express Lanes to Exit 120 expanded the road to five northbound lanes and four southbound lanes.

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The first distance sign posted along I-85 north of Atlanta appears to the south of Buford. Greenville, South Carolina is 113 miles to the northeast.

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SR 20 arcs southeast from Cumming to Sugar Hill and Buford to meet Interstate 85 at Exit 115 in one mile.

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Exit 115 was expanded from a diamond interchange to a cloverleaf interchange with c/d roadways. I-85 was expanded by an additional northbound lane during a $10.4 million, 2.23 mile long project completed on April 30, 2008.¹

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All traffic to SR 20 leaves I-85 in unison at Exit 115. SR 20 (Buford Drive) runs south as a busy suburban route to Lawrenceville. Northward the arterial expands to six lanes by the Mall of Georgia en route to I-985 at U.S. 23.

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SR 20 south encircles the Atlanta metropolitan area from Lawrenceville to Loganville, Conyers, McDonough and U.S. 19/41 at Hampton.

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SR 20 (Buford Drive) runs north into the city of Buford. Beyond an overlap with U.S. 23, SR 20 continues west through Sugar Hill to Cumming, Canton and ultimately the Alabama state line west of Rome.

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Interstate 85 reduces to a four lane freeway with a rural design as it leads east away from Buford. Construction started in 2019 added a diamond interchange with SR 324 (Gravel Springs Road) along this stretch.

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A commercialized diamond interchange (Exit 120) joins Interstate 85 with Hamilton Mill Road in one mile.

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SR 124 (Braselton Highway) turns east from Hog Mountain to mirror the course of I-85 east to Braselton. SR 124 intersects Hamilton Mill Road just south of Exit 120 opposite Hamilton Mill Parkway.

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Hamilton Mill Road meanders northwest from Exit 120 to SR 13 (Buford Highway) at Buford City Hall. Hamiltom Mill Parkway extends the road south though the Hamilton Mill Golf Course community.

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The Barrow County seat of Winder lies 15 miles to the southeast as Interstate 85 advances by suburban areas through northeast Gwinnett County.

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I-85 reassurance marker posted ahead of Duncan Creek.

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I-85 travels south of Legends Golf Course ahead of Exit 126 with SR 211. SR 211 southbound connects I-85 with the Mayfield Dairy Farm Visitors Center along parallel SR 124, the city of Winder and Fort Yargo State Park.

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SR 211 provides the first of two exits for Braselton. The town limits extend west from Jackson County to incorporate The Chateau Elon Golf Club community to the northwest of Exit 126.

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Travelers on I-85 north enter the northern tip of Barrow County a half mile ahead of the diamond interchange (Exit 126) with SR 211.

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SR 211 leads north from Braselton to combine with SR 53 near Road Atlanta race track. The state route ends east from there at SR 60/322 near Klondike and Belmont.

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Interstate 85 winds eastward across the Mulberry River to enter western Jackson County.

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A number of distribution centers lie west of Exit 129 with SR 53 (Green Street) at Braselton.

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Forthcoming SR 53 forms a 172 mile long arc from the Alabama state line, southwest of Rome, to Watkinsville, south of Athens.

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Exit 129 departs I-85 north for SR 53 (Green Street) north to Chestnut Mountain and Gainesville and south to Hoschton and Winder.

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A handful of subdivisions abut Interstate 85 on the outskirts of Braselton. The remainder of the drive east through Jackson County is rural.

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Jefferson, seat of Jackson County, lies 11 miles to the east. Greenville, South Carolina is less than 100 miles away.

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Timberland along I-85 north between the SR 60 and SR 332 overpasses.

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U.S. 129/SR 11 cross paths with Interstate 85 just outside the city of Pendergrass at Exit 137 in one mile.

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U.S. 129 provides a direct route southeast to Athens and the University of Georgia. U.S. 129 comprises a four lane arterial or divided highway between Exit 137 and the city.

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U.S. 129/SR 11 overlap on and off between the Florida state line near Statenville and the North Carolina border north of Ivy Log. The routes split four miles south of I-85 outside Jefferson.

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Northbound I-85 at the diamond interchange (Exit 137) with U.S. 129/SR 11. Spanning three states, U.S. 129 stretches 582 miles between Chiefland, Florida and Knoxville, Tennessee. Within Georgia, U.S. 129 connects Gainesville with Athens and Macon.

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Valentine Industrial Parkway crosses over Interstate 85 just beyond this reassurance marker. A number of distribution centers dot the area nearby.

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A diamond interchange joins SR 82 (Dry Pond Road / Holly Springs Road) with Interstate 85 in one mile. The forthcoming exit serves a number of additional distributor centers.

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SR 82 forms a 36 mile long circuitous route northwest to SR 323 outside Gainesville and south to Jefferson and west to Winder.

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Exit 140 parts ways with Interstate 85 north for SR 82. SR 82 follows Dry Pond Road east to the nearby settlement of Dry Pond and SR 82CO. Holly Springs Road takes the route northwest through rural areas to eastern Hall County.

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Northbound I-85 shield posted near Dry Pond and the Plainview Road overpass.

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Commerce, a city of over 6,500, lies nine miles ahead. The limits of the municipality extend northward to overlap several miles of Interstate 85 ahead of and beyond forthcoming Exit 147.

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SR 98 (Maysville Road) runs along a Norfolk Southern Railroad line east from Maysville to Exit 147 with I-85. The two parallel one another southeast into the Commerce city center.

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SR 98 measures 36.6 miles in length from SR 164 at Homer to SR 72 at Comer.

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Entering the folded diamond interchange (Exit 147) with SR 98 (Maysville Road) on Interstate 85 north. Maysville lies four miles to the west while Downtown Commerce and U.S. 441 Business is three miles to the southeast.

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