All lanes on the west side of I-285 will close this weekend between Cascade Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive as the Georgia Department of Transportation begins major repairs on the Perimeter.
The shutdown will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 8, and last until 5 a.m. on Monday, May 11.
Drivers should expect heavy traffic and detours onto I-20 and Langford Parkway throughout the weekend, according to GDOT officials.
“Plan ahead,” warned GDOT Spokesperson Natalie Dale. “We know that when you shut down two miles of a major interstate, congestion has to go somewhere.”
The full shutdown is part of the state’s plan to rebuild nearly 17 miles of I-285 in three years.
“There’s going to be new barrier walls, upgraded guardrails, overhead signs, better drainage,” Dale said
She said road workers are now ready to fix the 60-year-old concrete in the section of highway that runs from exit 7 to exit 9.
“To be able to do a full depth grind down of these concrete slabs, and then do an asphalt overlay, which will have easier maintenance in the long run, we have to shut down full sections to do that safely because of the size of the equipment that has to be in to do it.” said Dale.
