The project is funded by a private group that will collect future toll revenue for the first 50 years after the new toll lanes open.
A $5 billion highway revamp project in Atlanta is taking its first steps as crews began clearing trees from a 16-mile stretch of GA Highway 400 as part of a plan to add new toll lanes, reports Josh Green in Urbanize Atlanta.
“As 11Alive News relays, Georgia Department of Transportation officials selected a private-sector partner—an LLC called SR 400 Peach Partners—to foot the bill, meaning taxpayers won’t be on the hook for financing construction, operations, or maintenance of the toll lanes project.” The private group will receive toll revenue for 50 years, after which the project will become property of the state.
The lanes will operate on variable pricing based on time of day and real-time traffic conditions. “All 16 miles of toll lanes and BRT routes will be constructed with enhanced concrete that limits maintenance needs and boosts driver safety, along with radar-monitored traffic and accident alerts, according to SR 400 Peach Partners.”
The new toll lanes are expected to open sometime in 2031.
Read the full story: Billion-dollar highway overhaul, BRT project officially barreling ahead
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