Roads & Bridges magazine has named metro Atlanta’s Northwest Corridor Express Lanes the No. 1 project of the year. The Top 10 Roads awards, created in 2000, recognizes the top projects in North America. Each year, nominations are submitted to the R&B editorial staff, which determines the Top 10 list based on project challenges, impact to region and scope of work.
The largest transportation project in Georgia history, the Northwest Corridor Express Lanes project consisted of just under 30 miles of reversible tolled pavement along I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties in metro Atlanta, where officials have been battling for traffic space for decades. The project also included the design of six new express interchanges on I-75, new access points and 39 bridges with lengths totaling about 27,500 linear feet. Factor in the tight working space and environmental sensitivity, and there is no doubt as to why it was named the No. 1 project on Roads & Bridges’ 2018 Top 10 Roads list.
As far as space goes, it also was a very tight project. Officials called the work zone a “small postage stamp area,” according to the R&B article. The I-285/I-75 interchange was perhaps the area workers were happy to finally lick when all was said and done. In order to create construction space, Archer Western/Hubbard had to move I-285 by widening the outside and dropping the managed lanes into the median.
The Georgia Department of Transportation also prohibited the joint venture from using the general-purpose lanes of the existing interchanges. Four separate access points, some created using isolated side roads, had to be constructed for the I-285 interchange alone, according to the construction company.
Transporting equipment along the 30-mile project also had to be coordinated daily.
Location: Atlanta, Ga.
Owners: Georgia Department of Transportation, State Road & Toll Authority
Designer: Parsons Transportation Group
Contractors: Archer Western Contractors and Hubbard Construction Joint Venture
Cost: $599 million
Length: 29.7 miles
Completion Date: Aug. 31, 2018
