The city of Sandy Springs and dozens of communities along the State Route 400 corridor from the North Springs MARTA station to southern Forsyth County are preparing for construction to begin on ground-level express lanes.
In a March 17 update, the Georgia Department of Transportation said construction activity is expected to begin in early April along the 16-mile project corridor.
“Early work, including tree clearing, utility relocations, and initial site preparation, began in the fall to prepare the corridor for heavy construction,” the release said. “Residents and motorists will begin seeing construction equipment mobilizing, work zones being established, and phased traffic shifts designed to keep vehicles moving throughout construction.”
While the construction schedule is subject to change, the new express lanes are expected to open in 2031. Crews will begin foundational work on new bridges and interchange upgrades in the next month.
Beginning express lane construction
The state’s largest transportation project in history is years in the making. SR 400 Peach Partners, a consortium of domestic and international engineering and construction firms, has a 56-year, $4.6 billion contract to design, build, operate, and maintain the 16 miles of highway.
The SR 400 Express Lanes project will eventually tie into the I-285 Top End Express Lanes, which will be elevated above the existing roadway north to Abernathy Road. The express lane project along SR 400 is years ahead of the one along I-285, which is still seeking bids.
From the North Springs MARTA station to McGinnis Ferry Road at the Forsyth County border, there will be two express lanes in each direction. The express lane is one lane through southern Forsyth.
The express lanes will be constructed in segments, according to the project team. Once all segments have begun, construction activities will occur simultaneously across multiple sections of the corridor.
Related story:
• Sandy Springs leaders grill GDOT on SR 400 Express Lanes project
Sandy Springs neighbors
One of the three segments where construction will begin this spring is in Sandy Springs, extending from the North Springs MARTA Station to Woodland Elementary School.
Neighbors along Northgreen Drive on the west side of the highway formed a focus group and organized a meeting with city and state officials on March 5 to discuss construction and its potential impacts.
“The Northgreen Focus Group and neighbors from Talbot Colony, along with select members of the Sandy Springs City Council, met with 7th Congressional District State Transportation Board Member Joseph Stein and had a positive and productive meeting,” a focus group representative told Rough Draft. “Mr. Stein offered to advocate for the neighborhood group and work with GDOT to relay our concerns and present our requests to mitigate SR 400 construction impacts in our neighborhood.”
Neighbors said they were not ready to go on the record or be identified.
The SR 400 Express Lanes will be part of the state’s Express Lane Network with dynamic pricing, or toll rates adjusted based on real-time traffic conditions.
Mitigating construction impacts
This spring, motorists will begin seeing the new SR 400 Incident Response Unit trucks patrolling the corridor. GDOT said more information about the SR 400 IRU vehicles and operations will be posted on the project web page as details become available.
The trucks, similar to GDOT’s yellow “HERO” trucks, will provide rapid response to crashes, disabled vehicles, and roadway incidents during the projects duration, according to the state agency.
When traveling through construction zones, the project team encourages motorists to be aware of shifting traffic patterns, active work areas, and heavy equipment obstructing their line of sight.
Metro Atlantans who are impacted by the five-year construction project are encouraged to subscribe to alerts and a monthly newsletter.
The project field office is at 800 North Point Parkway, Suite 225, in Alpharetta.
• Email: 400expresslanes@dot.ga.gov
• Phone: 770-209-2520