Interstate 285
From Free net encyclopedia
- For the planned I-285 in North Carolina, see Interstate 285 (North Carolina).
Interstate 285 (abbreviated I-285) is a beltway interstate highway encircling Atlanta, Georgia for 62.77 miles (101.02 km). I-285 is also known as unsigned Georgia State Route 407 and is colloquially referred to as the Perimeter. It is very heavily traveled and frequently slows to a crawl during rush hour.
I-285 intersects with Interstate 85 in the northeast (Tom Moreland Interchange/"Spaghetti Junction") and southwest, Interstate 75 in the northwest ("Cobb Cloverleaf") and southeast, Interstate 20 (Tom Murphy Freeway/Ralph David Abernathy Freeway/Purple Heart Highway) in the east and west, and Georgia 400 (Turner McDonald Parkway/T. Harvey Mathis Parkway) in the north. It also meets one end each of Interstate 675, Langford Parkway ("Lakewood Freeway"), and the Stone Mountain Freeway. For 1.21 miles (1.95 km) in the southwest corner, I-85 occupies the median of I-285, yet the roadways remain separate. Exits are numbered clockwise, starting at the southwestern-most point at I-85, and ending just east of there where it meets I-85 again.
Between I-85 and I-20 in southwest Fulton County, I-285 is designated as the "Bob A. Holmes Freeway". It is also known as "James E. 'Billy' McKinney Highway" between I-20 in northwest Atlanta and I-75 near Cumberland Mall.
The highway was officially opened in 1969. At that time, it was a total of four lanes wide. Currently, it is eight to ten lanes wide, with the northern part from I-75 to S.R. 400 to I-85 being by far the most heavily traveled. For this reason, the Georgia NaviGAtor chose this section to be the first to be upgraded with new traffic cameras.
Because the Perimeter was built so near the city, a second Outer Perimeter was proposed, to exist outside even most of the exurbs. Due to local opposition, most of the idea has been shelved indefinitely; however the Northern Arc section continues to come up, particularly under the previous governor of Georgia Roy Barnes.
The section from I-75 to I-85 on the south side is currently being bridged for a new runway for Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
Contents |
Interchanges
The following exits are listed south to north, west to east, north to south and east to west with the mile-log numbering used since 2000 above, and the actual exit numbers originally used below.
| Mile # (exit#) | Road(s) intersected | Destination(s) | Interchange type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 (2) | Washington Road
(C.R. 1389) | East Point | Diamond | To U.S. 29 |
| 2 (3) | Camp Creek Parkway
(S.R. 6) | East Point, College Park | Diamond | Camp Creek MarketPlace
Georgia International Convention Center Atlanta Airport Alternate route to Six Flags Over Georgia via Riverside Parkway and Six Flags Drive. |
| 5A (4A) | Arthur B. Langford Jr. Parkway | Downtown Atlanta | 3/4 cloverleaf | Formerly Lakewood Freeway
Greenbriar Mall |
| 5B (4B) | Campbellton Road
(S.R. 166 West/S.R. 154 South) | Ben Hill, Carrollton | ||
| 7 (5) | Cascade Road
(C.R. 4176) | Cascade Heights | Diamond | Southwest Regional Library
Former alignment of S.R. 154 |
| 9 (6) | Martin Luther King Jr. Drive
(S.R. 139) | Adamsville | Diamond | Fulton County Airport at Charlie Brown Field |
| 10A (7A) | Ralph D. Abernathy Freeway
(I-20 East/S.R. 402 East) | Atlanta, Augusta | Left exit southbound. | |
| 10B (7B) | Tom Murphy Freeway
(I-20 West/S.R. 402 West) | Birmingham (AL) | Left exit northbound. | |
| 12 (8) | Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway | Bankhead, Mableton | Diamond | Formerly Bankhead Highway
Bankhead Train Station |
| 13 (9) | Bolton Road | Bankhead | Half diamond | Northbound only
Atlanta Union Mission (Bolton Road Campus-The Carpenter's House) Former northernmost alignment of S.R. 70 |
| 15 (10) | South Cobb Drive
(S.R. 280) | Smyrna | Diamond | Betty Porter Field Memorial Bridge |
| 16 (11) | South Atlanta Road
(C.R. 4519) | Smyrna | Diamond | Former alignment of S.R. 3 |
| 18 (12) | Paces Ferry Road
(C.R. 2838) | Vinings | Diamond | |
| 19 (13) | Cobb Parkway | Smyrna | Modified diamond (influenced by Cobb Cloverleaf) | Northbound only
To access Cobb Parkway from I-285 westbound, utilize exit 20. |
| 20 (14) | Larry McDonald Memorial Highway
(I-75/S.R. 401) | Marietta, Chattanooga (TN), Atlanta | Cloverstack | Cobb Cloverleaf |
| 22 (15) | Northside Drive
(C.R. 287) New Northside Drive Powers Ferry Road (C.R. 1154) | Sandy Springs | Diamond | |
| 24 (16) | Riverside Drive
(C.R. 209) Mount Vernon Highway | Sandy Springs | Diamond | |
| 24 (17) | Roswell Road | Sandy Springs | Diamond | |
| 26 (18) | Glenridge Drive
(C.R. 3377) Glenridge Connector (Former S.R. 407 Loop) | Sandy Springs | Diamond | Eastbound only
Northside Hospital-Atlanta Scottish Rite Children's Medical Center |
| 27 (19) | Turner McDonald Parkway
(S.R. 400/U.S. 19 North) | Cumming, Dahlonega, Atlanta | Modified full cloverleaf | |
| 28 (20) | Peachtree-Dunwoody Road
(C.R. 3377) | Dunwoody | Diamond | Westbound only |
| 29 (21) | Ashford-Dunwoody Road
(C.R. 1764) | Dunwoody | Partial cloverleaf | Perimeter Mall |
| 30 (22) | Chamblee-Dunwoody Road
(C.R. 5156) North Shallowford Road (C.R. 1775) Peachtree Road (C.R. 1698) | Dunwoody | ||
| 31A (23A) | Peachtree Industrial Boulevard
(S.R. 141 South) | Doraville, Chamblee | Partial cloverleaf | General Motors Assembly Plant |
| 31B (23B) | Peachtree Industrial Boulevard
(S.R. 141 North) | Norcross | ||
| 32 (25) | Buford Highway | Doraville, Chamblee | Modified diamond (at Spaghetti Junction) | |
| 33A (26A) | Northeast Expressway
(I-85 South/S.R. 403 South) | Downtown Atlanta | Modified four-level stack | Spaghetti Junction |
| 33B (26B) | Veterans Parkway
(I-85 North/S.R. 403 North) | Greenville (SC) | Spaghetti Junction | |
| 34 (27) | Chamblee-Tucker Road
(C.R. 5166) | Tucker | Modified diamond | Eastbound exit from Spaghetti Junction |
| 36 (27A) | Northlake Parkway
(C.R. 3112) | Tucker | 3/4 diamond | Southbound only |
| 37 (28) | Lavista Road
(S.R. 236) | Tucker | Diamond | Northlake Mall |
| 38 (29) | Lawrenceville Highway
(U.S. 29/S.R. 8) | Tucker, Decatur | Diamond | |
| 39B (30B) | Stone Mountain Freeway
(U.S. 78 West/S.R. 410 West) | Decatur, Atlanta | Cloverstack | |
| 39A (30A) | Stone Mountain Freeway
(U.S. 78 East/S.R. 410 East) | Snellville, Athens | Stone Mountain Park
Stone Mountain Village To S.R. 10 East | |
| 40 (31) | East Ponce de Leon Avenue
Church Street (C.R. 5151) | Clarkston, Scottdale, Decatur | Diamond | Your DeKalb Farmers' Market |
| 41 (32) | Memorial Drive
(Cynthia McKinney Parkway) (S.R. 10) | Decatur, Avondale Estates, Stone Mountain | DeKalb County Sheriff's Office
Georgia Perimeter College, Clarkston Campus | |
| 42 (32A) | Indian Creek Train Station | Stone Mountain | Diamond | Northbound only
MARTA Parking |
| 43 (33) | Covington Highway
(U.S. 278/S.R. 12) | Decatur, Lithonia | Diamond | |
| 44 (34) | Glenwood Road | Decatur | ||
| 46B (35B) | Ralph D. Abernathy Freeway
(I-20 West/S.R. 402 West) | Atlanta, Birmingham | Cloverstack | Pierre Howard Interchange |
| 46A (35A) | Purple Heart Highway
(I-20 East/S.R. 402 East) | Augusta | Pierre Howard Interchange | |
| 48 (36) | Flat Shoals Road
(S.R. 155) | Decatur | The Gallery at South DeKalb (South DeKalb Mall)
Georgia Perimeter College, Decatur Campus Georgia Bureau of Investigation Headquarters To Candler Road | |
| 51 (37) | Bouldercrest Road
(C.R. 5187) | Southeast Atlanta | ||
| 52 (38) | Terrell Starr Parkway
(I-675 South/S.R. 413 South) | Macon | Trumpet/half stack | |
| 33 (39) | Moreland Avenue
(U.S. 23/S.R. 42) | Southeast Atlanta | Diamond | Fort Gillem |
| 55 (40) | Jonesboro Road
(S.R. 54) | Forest Park, Southeast Atlanta | ||
| 58 (41) | Southeast Expressway
(I-75/S.R. 401) | Atlanta, Macon, Tampa (FL), Forest Park, Riverdale | Stack | To Old Dixie Road
(U.S. 19/U.S. 41) To Old Dixie Highway To North Air Cargo via CW Grant Parkway westbound (Aviation Boulevard) |
| 59 (42) | Clark Howell Highway
(C.R. 1567) Loop Road | Southeast Atlanta
(College Park) | Eastbound only
South Air Cargo/Atlanta Airport To access Clark Howell Highway and Loop Road from I-285 westbound, utilize exit 58 (Interstate 75 - Macon, Atlanta). | |
| 60 (43) | Riverdale Road
(S.R. 139) | College Park, Riverdale | Trumpet | Atlanta Airport |
| 61 (44) | Southwest Expressway
(I-85/S.R. 403) | Columbus, Montgomery (AL), Atlanta Airport, Atlanta | Special | James D. "Jim" McGee Memorial Highway is the designation of I-85 from Flat Shoals Road to Senoia Road (S.R. 74) in South Fulton County. |
| 62 (1) | Old National Highway
(S.R. 279) (S.R. 14 Spur) | College Park, Fayetteville, Red Oak | Special
(combined with I-85 junction) | To Roosevelt Highway (U.S. 29/S.R. 14)
College Park Downtown Business District |
Trivia
The portion of I-285 east of the "Cobb Cloverleaf" or I-75 Junction to "Spaghetti Junction" or I-85 is frequently referred to as the "Top End" in traffic reports, especially by Captian Herb Emory (WSB and ABC affiliate Channel 2).
Former Atlanta Braves pitcher Pascual Perez missed a 1982 Braves game where he was supposed to be the starting pitcher, by circling I-285 twice. Thereafter, his nickname was I-285. The Braves won the game.
I-285 cost $90 Million to complete in 1969. The reconstruction, particularly on the "Top End" and "Spaghetti Junction" I-285 I-85 reconfiguration has cost about $355 Million.
A lot of Atlanta's high end commercial real estate has popped up along I-285, particularly at the I-75 and Georgia 400 junctions. Notable buildings include the King and Queen towers as well as the Cobb Galleria complex.
The stretch of I-285 between I-75 and I-85 on the north end is one of the busiest freeways in the United States, handling about 250,000 cars per day and crossing through three counties. Through that stretch, the freeway baloons from 3 lanes to anywhere between 5 and 7 lanes.
The I-285 and Georgia 400 interchange is frequently cited as the most dangerous intersection in Atlanta, and is slated to be reconfigured with collector distributor lanes along Georgia 400 and a complete full stack interchange that will make it the largest freeway interchange east of Los Angeles, California. The new interchange is expected to be able to handle around 300,000 cars per day. Feasibility studies have been completed, and it is in Atlanta's 2025 Regional Transportation Plan.
Ironically, signage outside of I-285 along I-75 and I-85 refers to I-285 as the Atlanta Bypass. Locals know that, if anything, it is one of Atlanta's main streets. Since the 1980's, the Georgia Department of Transportation has planned an outer loop, which would be a roughly 230 mile circumferential loop around Metropolitan Atlanta. Under current Governor Sonny Perdue, the plans were dropped from the Regional Transportation Plan, in favor of the expansion of the rural state road network outside of Atlanta. As a sidenote, the state still retains ownership of most of the land that would be needed to complete at least the northern section of the Outer Loop, known as the Northern Arc.
I-285 runs right through the center of Sandy Springs, Georgia which, as recently as 2005, was the most populous unincorporated urban area in the United States. Upon incorporation in December of 2005, Sandy Springs has roughly 90,000 documented residents, with probably another 15,000 undocumented residents.
I-285 is the only freeway in the United States with an Airport Runway overpass. Atlanta's Hartsfield Airport recently completed major construction on its 5th runway, which runs directly overhead I-285 between I-85 and I-75 on the South Side.
References
External link
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