DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — Construction has wrapped up on a new type of interchange in DeKalb County that will open to drivers this weekend.
The new displaced left turn opens at North Druid Hills and Interstate 85. The new elevated bridge and ramps adds two lanes over the interstate and is the first in metro Atlanta.
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Drivers have watched construction clogging things up as more traffic is added from the growth of Brookhaven, nearby Emory and the new Arthur M. Blank Hospital.
“It would help though cause there’s a lot of traffic out here…anything will help,” driver Terrell Flinch said.
The displaced left turn allows left-turning traffic from Druid Hills getting onto I-85 to move over the bridge on the roadway without stopping.
The Georgia Department of Transportation says it creates fewer conflict points, less congestion and lowers the risk of crashes.
“So as you’re turning left, you have oncoming traffic coming at you. That creates collisions. That creates backup on the bridge for those who are queuing up to take the left. It can sometime extend the bridge through the next signalized intersection,” GDOT spokeswoman Natalie Dale said.
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The two traffic signals at two intersections will become one, just further back, as left-turning cars shift to the dedicate lane and cross over before the bridge.
The decision point for drivers to get into the two left-hand turn lanes comes earlier and GDOT says there will be a learning curve.
“But you’ll see how seamless it is and how much easier it is to make that transition from westbound to southbound,” Dale said.
GDOT says the displaced left turn should open by 11 a.m. Saturday but one of the workers said it could happen sometime overnight.
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