All bridge detours will be coordinated with local governments, first responders, and schools to ensure continued access to parcels and minimize impacts during construction when feasible.
Previous planning studies by the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) considered whether the SR 400 Express Lanes project would affect regional air quality. The project was evaluated in the Region’s Air Quality Conformity Analysis and was included in the financially-constrained six-year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for the region as early as 2014. The latest Air Quality Conformity Determination Report can be found at this link: http://documents.atlantaregional.com/transportation/tip19/am7/TARPCDR%20Am7.pdf. The proposed express lanes project is found in an amendment to the conformity report. All amendments require a conformity determination from the U.S. Department of Transportation, in consultation with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This amendment will involve a new air quality conformity determination by the United States Department of Transportation and is expected in June 2019. The most recent regional emissions analysis was approved by Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and EPA on December 4, 2018. Additional background is found at this website: https://atlantaregional.org/transportation-mobility/transportation-planning/tip-amendment/
An air quality analysis will be completed for this project as a part of the environmental process. Intersection analyses to evaluate the project’s potential effects on carbon monoxide emissions will be completed for intersections that exceed the threshold for traffic volumes and traffic delays.
If additional right-of-way is required, any existing physical barriers that separate SR 400 from school property would be replaced. Additional barriers, including noise barriers, will be further evaluated as part of the design process.
As part of this project, GDOT is conducting traffic analysis studies comparing the No-Build and Build conditions.
GDOT works to avoid and minimize impacts to school facilities where feasible and practical. Any facility impacts including but not limited to right-of-way, facilities upgrades, landscaping, special needs access, etc., will be addressed through the design, environmental, and right-of-way process and will be negotiated as part of the cost to cure.
The final plans for the project are still under development. The conceptual drawings presented will continue to be refined with a focus on avoiding perceived negative impacts when possible. If avoidance is not possible, the Design Team will explore opportunities to minimize or mitigate these impacts while adhering to the scope limitations of the project.
Early right-of-way acquisition is currently underway for the SR 400 Express Lanes project; however, not all right-of-way will be acquired early. The Developer will be responsible for any remaining right-of-way acquisition required as part of their final design in the construction phase. The project’s final design will be completed by the Developer and approved by GDOT in 2024 with right-of-way acquisition extending through 2026. If a property owner would like to sell in advance of the project’s final design, please contact the right-of-way lead, Phil Copeland at pcopeland@hntb.com.
GDOT must make right-of-way decisions based on what is required for the project’s engineering and design while conforming with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) environmental decision-making process and not based on parcel type. When feasible and practical, GDOT first tries to avoid right-of-way impacts. If they cannot be avoided, GDOT works to minimize right-of-way impacts. Right-of-way impacts shown at the 2019 Public Information Open Houses were identified but the project team continues to identify needs based on the evolving engineering and design refinements.
GDOT makes every attempt to minimize property acquisition and relocations during the project design phase. Unfortunately, property acquisitions and displacements are unavoidable for some projects. As the design progresses, GDOT will make every effort to minimize the amount of right-of-way impacts to the greatest extent possible.
In the event your property is required in total or in part, GDOT’s right-of-way team will meet individually with each property owner to discuss the project and the impacts to the specific property. At that time, the property owner will be shown design drawings and have the opportunity to discuss their specific property and access needs. More information regarding the acquisition process can be found in the pamphlet titled What Happens When Your Property is Needed for a Transportation Facility which can be found on the GDOT website at http://www.dot.ga.gov/PS/ROW.