Wednesday, February 22, 2006

GA 400 News - 2/22/2006

GA 400 Northbound Construction Pics - 2/21/2006

I have just created a webpage featuring six (6) GA 400 northbound construction photos. To see them, please click here.

Lawmakers Target GA 400 Toll Runners

Georgia's State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) reports that there are over $900,000 in uncollected GA 400 tolls due to a high number of "toll runners".

As a result, a bill has been introduced in the Georgia House of Representatives (HB 1190) to close loopholes that SRTA says allows too many drivers to get away with not paying the $0.50 toll. For the article from WSB-TV, please click here.

For a video from WSB-TV on the GA 400 "toll runner" bill, please click here.

There's even audio of alleged "toll runner" Dennis K. Larson being interviewed by WSB-AM 750 talk show host Neal Boortz. This interview is very interesting and I highly encourage you to listen to it.

Please note that while we here at "The Georgia Road Geek" find the interview very interesting, we absolutely do not encourage anyone to break the law regarding the GA 400 tolls or any other law that is on the books. If you disagree with the GA 400 tolls or any other state laws, then please do like Mr. Boortz did and write your state legislators accordingly.

GA 400 Ramp Meters

Finally, we have asked for someone at the Georgia DOT to give us information regarding the new ramp meters installed from Sandy Springs to Alpharetta. Once we find something out, we'll let you know.

That's all for now. Thanks for visiting and please do so often.

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Georgia's "Steer It/Clear It" Law

Dear Reader,

Thanks to "Georgia Road Geek" reader Steve Anderson, we now bring you Georgia's "steer it/clear it" law for your reading pleasure. It is Georgia Code 40-6-275 (c), which reads as follows...

When a motor vehicle traffic accident occurs with no apparent serious personal injury or death, it shall be the duty of the drivers of the motor vehicles involved in such traffic accident, or any other occupant of any such motor vehicle who possesses a valid driveŕs license, to remove said vehicles from the immediate confines of the roadway into a safe refuge on the shoulder, emergency lane, or median or to a place otherwise removed from the roadway whenever such moving of a vehicle can be done safely and the vehicle is capable of being normally and safely driven, does not require towing, and can be operated under its own power in its customary manner without further damage or hazard to itself, to the traffic elements, or to the roadway. The driver of any such motor vehicle may request any person who possesses a valid driveŕs license to remove any such motor vehicle as provided in this Code section, and any such person so requested shall be authorized to comply with such request.

For this particular Georgia Code section in its entirety, please click here.

Incidentally, the slogan "If You Can Steer It, Clear It" was used by the State of Georgia to help make motorists aware of this particular law if and when they are involved in a traffic accident on Georgia's roads. I wish I still had a copy of the pamphlet they pubished years ago. :(

PLEASE NOTE: "The Georgia Road Geek" does not intend for this blog, or any other blogs referencing state, federal, or local laws, to be construed as legal advice, nor does "The Georgia Road Geek" offer any explicit or implicit legal advice to any of its readers. It is solely the reader's responsibility to consult a lawyer for expert advice and counsel regarding any law.

BTW, please look for more GA 400 construction photos in future blogs.

That's all for now. Thanks again to Steve Anderson for sharing his research with us, thank you for your visit, and please come back often.





Monday, February 20, 2006

GA 316 Official Groundbreaking

Fellow road enthusiasts, here's the latest on the GA 316 front...

Today, Governor Sonny Perdue has officially broken ground for the I-85/GA 316 interchange improvements. Please click here for the story from the WSB-TV website.

Earlier today, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution had an article about the impact of the 316 construction on local businesses around the interchange itself. One local businessman in that vicinity attributes it to a "shot in the gut". Please click here for the article.

According to a WSB-TV news article just broadcast before composing this blog, one of the new ramps will allow traffic to go straight from GA 316 westbound to Pleasant Hill Road without ever having to be on I-85.

As more developments occur, we here at "The Georgia Road Geek" will keep you abreast.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading and please come back often.

Friday, February 17, 2006

Georgia Road Geek News - 2/17/2006

GDOT Official Interstate Celebration Website Online

As of today, the Georgia DOT has launched its own website to celebrate the Interstate's 50th Birthday at www.dot.state.ga.us/50th.

Included on the website are some vintage 195o's and 1960's GDOT maps, plus interviews on such topics as why I-85 got routed between Gainesville and Athens.

The official history of Georgia's Interstates can be found in the PDF document "Georgia Celebrates the Interstates". Between this document and history info J.T. Legg has shared, this has been a wonderful learning experience for me. :)

If you are a "road scholar" like me, or at least a little curious, then I encourage you to visit their new website and see it all for yourself.

Proposed New Interchanges/HOV Lanes For GA 316

According to a GDOT press release dated February 1st, there is a proposal to build HOV lanes on GA 316 and upgrade its intersections with Collins Hill Road and GA 20/124 to interchanges. Please click here for the full press release document.

If You Can Steer It... CLEAR IT!!!

This afternoon, on GA 9, just north of Milton Avenue in Downtown Alpharetta, there was a 3-car "fender-bender" in front of the Louie Jones Funeral Home.

For at least 5 minutes, the individuals just sat there and held up traffic, which even on a good weekday afternoon can stink. None of the vehicles involved was disabled, thus they could be easily driven off the highway and into the funeral home parking lot. Finally, they did.

What's my point, dear reader? Simple... if you can steer it, clear it!!!

Unless the vehicle in question has been disabled or there is an injured person inside of it, Georgia law requires that the vehicle(s) be moved to the side of the road so as not to impede the normal flow of traffic. If I find the specific Georgia Code section, then I'll let you know, but if you know (please give exact Georgia Code number), then please e-mail it to me at georgiaroadgeek at bellsouth dot net.

Get Your "Georgia Road Geek" Fix (RSS Or E-Mail)

Finally, you can get your "feeds" of this blog via not only Atom, but also via other Really Simple Subscription (RSS) browsers and even e-mail. Please see "Table of Contents" for the links.

My wife and I are hungry and it's time for dinner. Thanks always for visiting and have a great weekend!

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

A Half-Century of Interstates

On June 29, 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, which launched the largest roadbuilding program in American history... construction of the Interstate Highway System!!!

Last November, I blogged about Georgia's connection to its glorious history. Please click here to read.

And now, for your reading pleasure, a little history...

Georgia's original interstates were I-16, I-20, I-24, I-59, I-75, I-85, I-95, I-185, I-285, and I-475. These original Georgia interstates were completed in 1979, I-185 being the very last to be completed. From what I remember seeing on one of my dad's old roadmaps from circa 1960, the first stretch of Georgia Interstate to be opened was a portion of I-75 in south Georgia.

Since these original Interstates, Georgia has added even more Interstates as follows:

- I-516 (GA 21 until circa 1990.)
- I-520 (GA 232 until circa 1977.)
- I-575 (Construction began in 1978, completed by 1990.)
- I-675 (Opened in 1988.)
- I-985 (The limited-access portion of GA 365 that was designated with this route number in 1985.)

Interstates 420 (Lakewood Freeway extension from I-75/85 to I-20) and 485 (Stone Mountain Tollway) were proposed for the City of Atlanta, but were ultimately squashed by neighborhood groups. Part of the proposed I-485 route eventually became Freedom Parkway, with the Carter Library being in the middle of what would have been an interchange between it and a proposed GA 400 extension to the southside.

There was also a proposed I-175 that would have run from I-75 in Cordele to Albany, but, alas, Albany would not have its Interstate. Instead, I-175 was scrapped in favor of the "watered-down" Georgia-Florida Parkway (GA 300), whose interchange at I-75 (Exit 99) is where I-175 would have met I-75.

In recent years, Congress has proposed 2 more Interstates for Georgia as follows:

- I-3 (Savannah to Knoxville, via Augusta and the northeast Georgia mountains.)
- I-14 (Alexandria, LA, to Augusta, via Columbus and Macon/Warner Robins.)

Although politicians are promoting the perceived economic benefits of I-3, it is heavily and vehemently opposed by residents of the northeast Georgia mountains, western North Carolina, and eastern Tennessee. See the "STOP I-3" website for details.

I-14 has also been proposed for economic development purposes, but I do not know of any organized oppostion group for this proposal. In any event, it could be years before the first spadeful of dirt is broken for either highway (assuming the Georgia DOT does anything to get these projects on the drawing board in the first place).

I still remember when I-20 dead-ended at GA 5 in Douglas County. At that time, you had to take US 78 into Alabama, where you'd pick up I-20 again via AL 9. When we traveled that particular stretch of I-20 to and from Birmingham last June, I still had a picture in my mind of how it looked when I was a little boy traveling with family to see my maternal relatives in Douglasville. Yes, dear reader, I was destined to be a full-fledged, unrepentant roadgeek... and I'm darn proud of it, y'all!!! :)

Now that I've given you a short history lesson (plus a brief detour down "Memory Lane"), I encourage each of you to mark June 29, 2006, on your calendar and wish the Dwight David Eisenhower Interstate System a happy 50th birthday.

For more information about the Interstate's 50th birthday (including a lot of great history), please visit the official celebration website at the American Association of State Highway and Transporation Officials (AASHTO), www.interstate50th.org.

Thanks for visiting and please come again.

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

DUI Victims Memorial Signs

On newsgroup misc.transport.road, I found an article about Georgia's first DUI victims memorial sign that was erected on I-16 near Statesboro. Please click here for the news article from Access North Georgia.

The DUI memorial sign program is run by Georgia's Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) in cooperation with the Georgia DOT (GDOT).

If you had a loved-one who was killed by a drunk driver on any Georgia state-maintained highway and the individual who committed the DUI was convicted, then the victim's family may qualify to have a sign erected in their loved-one's memory. The CJCC pays GDOT for the sign with money from the state's crime victims compensation fund. For further details and an application, please click here to access their website.

I hope and pray that you never have to consider taking advantage of such a program, but IMHO, it's not a bad idea for reminding drivers of the tragic consquences of DUI on families. Even with much greater awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving, one DUI and one victim is still one too many.

If you drink, then please don't drive... and if you have to drive, then please don't drink before you do. Staying sober behind the wheel will keep you from potentially ruining both your life and the lives of countless others.

My wife just got home and now it's time to celebrate Valentines Day. Thanks always for visiting and may you and yours have a happy and safe Valentines Day. :)

Friday, February 10, 2006

GA 316 Update and Frappr! Maps

GA 316 Update - February 10, 2006

During the I-85/GA 316 interchange reconstruction, the ramp from Boggs Road to I-85 South will be closed for the next 3 years.

Please click here to read more about it on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's website.

Road Enthusiast Frappr! Maps

I have just created a "Georgia Road Geek" Frappr! Map for those who are readers of "The Georgia Road Geek" and/or fans of Georgia's roads, highways, and byways, and you are cordially invited to add yourself to it. Please click here for the map.

I also encourage you to check out the following additional road enthusiast Frappr! maps as well...

- Frappr! Southeast Roads
- Frappr! Northeast Roads
- Frappr! Roadgeek

Thanks in advance for your support of our Georgia Road Geek Frappr! Map and always for reading my blogs. Please come back often and tell all your friends about us.

Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Last GA 400 Button Copy Sign Gone

Just a quick post for today...

Today, as I was driving up US 19/GA 400 on the way home from work, I noticed that the very last button copy sign, which was for Abernathty Road/Dunwoody (Exit 5A), has been removed and replaced with a new split BGS Abernathy Road East-Exit 5A/Abernathy Road West-Exit 5B.

Approaching the Northridge Road exit (Exit 6), there is a new BGS for "Chattahoochee River National Rec Area/Roswell Visitor Center", one northbound and one southbound. (IMHO, the sign should have been a brown/blue combo for the CRNRA and RVC, respectively, but hey, I didn't make the decision.)

As soon as I can get photos, I'll post them here for y'all.

US 19/GA 400 Construction Update: Contractors are installing the new drainage system in the median.

Thanks for visiting and please do so often.

Monday, February 06, 2006

Will Cops Let Truckers Give You The Bird?

Dear reader, the Georgia General Assembly wants to make sure the cops let truckers give people the bird. :)

A proposal (House Bill 1180) was submitted by State Representative Carl Rogers of Gainesville to regulate the length of time that law enforcement can stop a chicken truck in temperatures of over 85 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 29.4 degrees Celsius) and the humidity is above 50 percent.

Please click here for the full text and the bill's current status.

And now, a brief history lesson (from the City of Gainesville's official website)...

After World War II- A visionary named Jesse Jewell started what was to become the state's largest agricultural crop- poultry. The $1,000,000,000 a year industry has given Gainesville the title "Poultry Capital of the World."

Next time you visit Gainesville, you can pay homage to the chicken at Poultry Park, located on West Academy Street at Jesse Jewell Parkway. You will even find a statue of a chicken there.

The University of Georgia's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences even has a website to help you learn even more about Georgia's poultry industry. Just click here to see.

Last, but not least, don't forget the "Big Chicken" on US 41/GA 3 (Cobb Parkway) in Marietta.

So next time someone gives you "the bird", just smile and thank both the poultry industry and the good folks under the "Gold Dome" in Atlanta.

That's all for now. Thanks for visiting and please do so often.

Wednesday, February 01, 2006

Clinched Interstates And Other News

First of all, thanks to J.T. Legg of Peach State Roads for the correction regarding Old Hull Road.

On my last blog, I posted an aerial photo of the northeastern corner of the Athens Perimeter and mistakenly noted US 29/GA 8 as having once used Old Hull Road as its original route. To read the history of the Athens Perimeter, please click here.

Finally, I am ready to debut my own Clinched Interstates Page on Tim Reichard's Central PA/MD Roads website. To see my page, please click here.

Thanks to Tim for all his hard work and for providing this wonderful service to the road enthusiast community. If you would like to create your own page, then please click here.

In other Georgia highway news...

- The Georgia DOT has erected and dedicated the first DUI victim memorial sign on I-16 near Statesboro. (I had just heard this on WSB-TV about an hour ago. If I find the article online, then I'll share it with y'all).

- At the I-85/GA 316 interchange, trees are being cut down in preparation for the renovation work. Please click here for the article from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

That's all for now. Thanks for visiting and please do so often.