CHEROKEE COUNTY, Ga. — Police, firefighters and EMT's are ready to respond to emergencies along the new reversible express lanes thousands of people will soon get to drive on.
The new lanes run six miles along I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties.
Emergency responders have trained for about a year for it.
Police and firefighters say the real test will come when they must answer the first call for an express lane crash.
They say moveable walls of the lanes will help them get to crashes or emergencies faster.
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Hawk Hageback, a contractor for Georgia’s Department of Transportation is training first responders on how to best navigate the express lane in Cherokee and Cobb counties when there is a crash or another emergency.
There are a lot of challenges for responders, like only having one lane to work with, that is walled off or in Cobb county, dealing with the elevated express lane sections.
That is why officials say coordination with agencies will be key.
On the six-mile enclosed route in Cherokee county, first responders will have 20 access points, including nine emergency gates.
“There's a number of decisions that will have to be made on the front end, depending on the actual location of the incident, and coordinating the response to that scene,” Woodstock police chief Moss said.
There is no word on exactly when the express lanes will open.