Previous coverage: HOT lanes

Now it may be Ga. 400’s turn to get a HOT lane.

The Georgia Department of Transportation unveiled plans Tuesday night for a new set of express toll lanes that would go on Ga. 400.

At a public forum in Roswell, GDOT engineers said Ga. 400 is one of the most congested roads in metro Atlanta. The only way to alleviate the problem is to add another lane and make it a HOT lane.

The proposed HOT lane would go for a 24 mile stretch on Georgia 400 from I-285 in Sandy Springs to Highway 20 in Forsyth County.

“We are at a point with our infrastructure that that it is so expensive to expand and refurbish that it is simply going to require more money,” said DOT spokesman David Spear.

But those who heard the DOT’s pitch were not impressed.

“It will not help the situation,” one man told Channel 2 Action News. “It will make it worse.”

Roswell resident Bernard Ransby added, “We pay enough already. The Peach Pass on I-85 is not really working.”

But others said if it opens up Ga. 400, they will take anything

“It ends up less congestion,” said Valerie Gourley of Roswell. “So that would be a good idea.”

There is no timetable from the DOT on when Georgia 400 will add the toll lanes.

"The study is considering the possibility of adding improvements such as tolled Express Lanes and High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes to the corridor," the DOT said on its website. "The study is currently in a feasibility stage to determine if a more detailed study of alternatives should move forward."

The DOT will hold another public hearing at Piney Grove Middle School in Cumming Thursday, followed by another one at First Baptist Church Sandy Springs March 20.

HOT lanes have been in operation on I-85 in Gwinnett and DeKalb counties since October.

Last week the State Roadway and Toll Authority said it has made about $400,000 in December and January from the toll lane.

The interim DOT commissioner said in January that the state is still looking at plans for reversible toll lanes on I-75 and I-575. The governor pulled the public-private partnership that would have helped pay for the project up front.

Now the state will have to come up with the nearly $1 billion it will take to fund the project, likely in several stages.

Listen

news

weather

traffic

mobile apps

Everything you love about wsbradio.com and more! Tap on any of the buttons below to download our app.

amazon alexa

Enable our Skill today to listen live at home on your Alexa Devices!