U.S. 411 Connector/Emerson-Cartersville Bypass

Hello, good people. It's Bryant, your friendly neighborhood southern roadgeek-man, again. :-D

Alright, now to the topics at hand: the U.S. 411 Connector and the Emerson-Cartersville bypass. Emerson and Cartersville are both in Bartow County, which is 32 miles or so north of downtown Atlanta. Emerson is in close proximity to Red Top Mountain State Park and Allatoona Lake. U.S. 411/S.R. 20 provide access to Rome and Gadsden through the northern Cartersville city limits. The stretch of S.R. 20 from I-75 to its multiplex with U.S. 41 and U.S. 411 is a very congested point, due many travelers utilizing the U.S. 411/S.R. 20 expressway to reach Rome and Gadsden. There have been talks of building a freeway from I-75 to the current Rome expressway on the northwestside of Cartersville, but that's still on paper, as of now.

Currently, GDOT is building the Emerson-Cartersville bypass, which will become apart of State Route 113. The bypass will utilize Red Top Mountain and Old Alabama roads, along with a new connector, currently under construction.


Current route to Rome from I-75
(courtesy of maps.google.com)

U.S. 411 Connector detail (connectivity improvements)
(courtesy of GDOT, by way of GRG)

Chat About Emerson-Cartersville Bypass
(courtesy of city-data.com)

Red Top Mountain/Old Alabama Roads (current routing)
(courtesy of maps.google.com)

Twitter

Hey, y'all. It's me, Bryant, again.

I wasn't a big proponent of Twitter, at first, as I felt that it was pointless. The reason that I felt that way was because I was like, "Why would anyone want an update of frivolous stuff going on in my life?" So, just for the heck of it, I joined; it isn't as bad as I thought that it would be. Since I joined it yesterday, I have 41+ tweets. I wanted "Southern Roadgeek" as my handle, but it wouldn't fit, so I went with "SoRoadgeek."

Check me out on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/SoRoadgeek/.

Emory Village Roundabout

Hey, y'all. It's me, Bryant, again.

The Emory Village, which is centered around Emory Univeristy just northeast of the Atlanta city limits, is getting another roundabout. There's currently a mini-roundabout, if you will, at the intersection of North Decatur Road and Lullwater Road. The intersection that's getting the roundabout -- North Decatur Road, Oxford Road and Dowman Drive (Emory University's entrance) -- is a five-leg intersection, with each direction on its own separate signal phase. There are also plans to give North Decatur Road a road diet, making North Decatur one lane each direction for through traffic, with a double left turn-only lane, to facilitate left turning traffic.

Just a few things to remember when driving through a roundabout: traffic inside of the circle has right-of-way; pedestrians in the crosswalks do as well. If there's no conflicting traffic, do no stop; keep moving. Additionally, in multi-lane roundabouts, choose your lane position early; do not change lanes inside of a roundabout. Lastly, slow down and pay attention to what's going around you. I know. I know. It's hard with trying to text, talk on a cell phone, read the paper, put on make-up, etc. while driving, but try not to to do these things. :-D

Emory Village New Roundabout
(courtesy of myfoxatlanta.com)

More on Emory Village New Roundabout
(courtesy of emory.edu)

Video on How to Drive Roundabout
(courtesy of YouTube user MORPCSafety)

Videos Near Georgia 400

Since Georgia 400's a hot topic in the Atlanta news today, here's a few videos that take place near the highway. Click the links below, to see videos on the Perimeter Center Business District and Dawsonville, hometown of Bill Elliott.

Perimeter Center [HD]

Video Description: This video follows Abernathy Road/Perimeter Center (West & East) through the Perimeter Center Business District, which is a major Metro Atlanta edge city, centered around Perimeter Mall. The district is in two of Metro Atlanta's newest cities: Sandy Springs (incorporated December 2005) and Dunwoody (incorporated December 1, 2008)

Dawsonville, Georgia [HD]

Video Description: This is a real-time video of the small, north Georgia mountain city of Dawsonville (population 619). NASCAR racer Bill Elliott grew up near here, and Bill Goldberg (of WCW/WWE) once lived there, as well.

Photo courtesy of aaroads.com.

Georgia 400 toll extension

Hey y'all,

I know that I haven't posted in awhile, but here I am, back again. Today, GSRTA (Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority) voted to extend the tolls on Georgia's only toll road -- State Route 400, which connects the Buckhead community as well as north Fulton County with the north Georgia mountains. Planning for the portion of Georgia 400 between I-285 and its terminus at S.R. 60 (Dahlonega) began in 1954, and was dedicated in 1971. The southern extension between I-85 and I-285 was opened in 1993, with a toll of $0.50 for 2-axle vehicles.

We, as the Georgia taxpayers, were promised that the tolls would be removed from this road when the bonds were paid off, which would've been next summer (2011); however, the tolls will be extended to 2020. When the bonds are paid off next year, SRTA will have over $40 million dollars in their reserves, which could/should go toward building the missing link at the Ga. 400/I-85 interchange. There's no direct connection from I-85 South to Georgia 400 North; nor is there a direct connection from Georgia 400 South to I-85 North. Motorists have to navigate a confusing/congested route: Sidney Marcus Boulevard, Cheshire Bridge/Lenox roads and Buford Highway. Here's a diagram of the preliminary plans on how the interchange could look (CLICK HERE). Also, there's the cost of tearing down the toll plaza, if the tolls were ever gotten rid of. Also, the Ga. 400/I-285 interchange is antiquated and is one of the most dangerous interchanges in the state. Traffic from I-285 East to Georgia 400 North has to merge left to right... with a very short taper (CLICK HERE). 

In short, I'm disappointed that our elected officials didn't keep their promise to remove the tolls from 400 when the bonds are to be paid off next year; however, if they utilize all of the monies in their (SRTA's) reserves and those collected until/into 2020 to build that missing link, knock down the toll plaza and revamp the Ga. 400/I-285 interchange, I'm supportive of this decision.

Georgia 400 Tolls Extended Until 2020
(Courtesy of ajc.com)