Q: When is the work on Interstate 75 between McDonough and I-675 scheduled for completion? What exactly are they doing, and will it alleviate the horrendous daily backups in that area?
—Dan Cowles, Cumming
A: The South Metro Express lanes, which have been under construction since 2014, are on schedule to be finished early next year.
New bridges, sound walls, drainage structures and signage also are part of the $223 million project.
The Mount Carmel bridge opened ahead of schedule in May, a Georgia Department of Transportation spokeswoman told Q&A on the News in an email.
The project adds two reversible lanes on a 12-mile corridor along I-75 from Exit 216 (Ga. 155/McDonough Road) to Exit 228 (Ga. 138/Stockbridge Highway).
The lanes will be open to northbound traffic in the morning and switch to accommodate southbound traffic in the afternoon and evening.
Bridges at Jonesboro Road and Flippen Road, and an I-675 flyover bridge, also are being constructed.
These are first toll lanes in the metro area since I-85’s high occupancy lane was switched to a high occupancy toll lane five years ago, the AJC reported.
“The current high traffic volume on I-75 and predicted population growth in the region have been evaluated to determine that express toll lanes are a viable way to accommodate growing traffic on this roadway,” GDOT states in a video describing the project.
An active Peach Pass (peachpass.com) will be needed to travel in the express lanes.
Andy Johnston with Fast Copy News Service wrote this column. Do you have a question? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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