$5 million grant awarded for I-75 express lane ramp in Cobb

The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded Cobb County a grant that will help pay for a project to install an I-75 express lane exit ramp.

The $5 million grant will be applied towards the Akers Mill Road exit ramp project, which will provide drivers using the northwest corridor express lanes with direct access to the Cumberland area.

“The fact that so many groups are working together demonstrates how essential this ramp is for the continued economic prosperity of the county,” said Cobb County Commission Chairman Mike Boyce.

The current configuration forces drivers exiting the express lanes north of Akers Mill Road to make a quick, five-lane merge on I-75 to reach the Cumberland Boulevard interchange. The reversible 1,600-foot-long ramp will allow drivers to access Cumberland Boulevard by exiting at Akers Mill Road instead of tempting fate and making that perilous merge.

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The $19.7 million cost of the new exit ramp will be funded with the $5 million grant, along with $3.1 million from the Cumberland Community Improvement District, $4 million from Cobb County Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax funds, $1.5 million from the State Road & Tollway Authority and $6 million from the Atlanta Regional Commission.

Cobb DOT Director Erica Parish said construction on the ramp could start in 2021 because much of the work required before turning dirt has been completed.

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