Residents of Heron Bay Golf and Country Club who travel towards the city will be excited to learn that Atlanta’s Southside is gaining express lanes along Interstate 75. The Georgia Department of Transportation announced on July 7 that a $176.2 million contract has been awarded for the project, which will begin later this year and is set to be completed by the end of 2016.
The project will include 12 miles of variable-rate toll lanes on I-75 between Highway 155/McDonough Road and Highway 138/Stockbridge Highway in Henry and Clayton counties. Two lanes will be added in the center median from Highway 138 to just north of Highway 20, and a third reversible center lane will be added from there to Highway 155 in Henry County. The lanes will be separated by barriers and will carry traffic northbound in the mornings and southbound in the afternoons and evenings.
“Well in excess of 100,000 vehicles, including both commuters and thousands of tractor trailers passing through Atlanta, utilize this corridor each day,” says GDOT Commissioner Keith Golden. “These Express Lanes will benefit both the commuters and the through traffic and, as one of the first components of the Department’s metro-wide managed lanes network, will offer a glimpse of the improved mobility options coming to all of Metro Atlanta.”
Commuters with a Peach Pass will be able to access the new lanes through the program established by the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA). The program uses remote transponders to assess variable-rate tolls based on traffic volumes, as is the case on I-85 northbound. Motorists will have the option to use the express lane or not, which will also have lane entrances at I-675 near Highway 20 and at Jonesboro Road.
The new express lanes are just one more benefit to owning a new home in Henry County’s Heron Bay community, which is located off of Highway 155. With a list of amenities a mile long, including a Canongate golf course and the 1,100-acre Cole Reservoir, it’s no surprise that Heron Bay has been named Community of the Year by the Greater Atlanta Home Builder’s Association. With homes priced from the $180,000s to more than $1 million, Heron Bay Golf and Country Club has a home for everyone.