Georgia DOT spends $356K to rein in roadway weavers

Goal of project is to have fewer wrecks, faster commutes.

New pavement markings and restriping are being added to selected lanes of the Downtown Connector to cut down on the weaving that slows traffic and causes wrecks.

The Georgia Department of Transporta- tion will spend about $356,000 on the project, which will direct motorists traveling through the downtown core of Atlanta.

The so-called “operational enhancements” will begin at the Brookwood Split — i.e., the northbound area near the Brookwood Amtrak station where I-75 and I85 go their separate ways — and end at University Avenue, just south of I-20.

Interstate shields painted on the pavement — you’ve seen them near the north-end split and above the Grady Curve — will give drivers a headsup about the I-75/I-85 splits and the I-20 interchange.

Wider stripes and reflective markers also will be placed between certain lanes to separate traffic proceeding through downtown from local traffic that’s entering and exiting.

The wider stripe is intended to distinguish “through” lanes from ex- it lanes and deter lastminute lane changing, according to a GDOT press release.

But as usual, traffic will get worse before it gets better.

You can expect slowmoving equipment and rolling lane closures while work is ongoing between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. on weeknights and on weekends.

Contractors started working on the project in late June and are expected to finish this fall.