In addition to the new I-85 HOT lanes, here are a couple of other ideas currently being proposed.
PROPOSED TOLL ROAD #1: Ronald Reagan Parkway Extension
The Gwinnett County Department of Transportation, in conjunction with a team headed by Skanska USA, is currently conducting a study to see where it can place a proposed 3-mile (5 km) extension of Ronald Reagan Parkway (RRP) from its current northwestern end at Pleasant Hill Road directly to I-85.
At this time, the initial proposal is for the extension to be financed, built, and maintained by Skanska and their partners on behalf of Gwinnett County. The costs would be recouped by tolling the new stretch of limited-access road,
Said toll road would be an additional extension of Sugarloaf Parkway from US 29/GA 316 (University Parkway) near Dacula northward across the eastern part of Gwinnett County to Peachtree Industrial Boulevard near Buford.
Currently, Gwinnett County is building an extension of Sugarloaf Parkway from GA 20 to 316. This new section will be a fully limited-access highway that will end with a cloverleaf interchange at 316.
Based on my research regarding the RRP Extension (in red) and "Gwinnett Connector" (in black), I have drawn on a map where I believe these future toll roads may be located...
As for the tolling themselves (again, assuming the 2 proposed toll roads are built), I wonder if they would be integrated into the new "PeachPass" system that GDOT will be implementing on the I-85 HOT lanes and on the existing GA 400 tollway. Using Orlando and Miami as examples, both these Florida cities have toll roads that are owned and operated by their own respective expressway authorities and their own electronic toll systems, but they do allow those who have Florida's SunPass transponders to use the roads.
While I personally prefer that tolls only be imposed for the sole purpose of paying off any incurred bond indebtedness (and removed as soon as said bonds are paid off), I do hope that Gwinnett's future toll roads will "keep it simple" and work with GDOT and the State Road and Tollway Authority to use "PeachPass".
If you have any comments regarding these Gwinnett toll road proposals, then please feel free to post them on this blog.
Well, folks, that's it for tonight. Thanks for reading and please come back often.
11/14/2009 9:19 AM
Justin Gianelloni wrote:
Is it just me, or does that look like phase one of the infamous Northern Arc? Not that I'm complaining or anything, but maybe if Gwinnett goes through with this, Forsythe and Cherokee counties can keep it going to the west. Having to personally make the drive from Canton to Duluth on Hwy 20 makes me want to pick up a shovel and build it myself. Reply to this
11/15/2009 6:49 PMBryant wrote:
I agree, it's a bear to drive. I actually drove all of S.R. 20 a little while back, filming the whole thing. I disliked the two-lane sections, because it was easy to get caught behind a slowpoke. Reply to this
11/14/2009 10:38 AMBryant wrote:
The Ronald Reagan Parkway extension, I think, is a good idea. Its current terminus at Pleasant Hill Road is a mess, especially trying to navigate Pleasant Hill and its traffic lights. Yuck! However, I'd like to see how it'd link to I-85, with the close proximity of interchanges.
The Gwinnett Connector could work, giving motorists in southern Gwinnett and points east better access to I-85.
I don't like toll roads, personally, but if they can help alleviate traffic congestion, they can be okay. "If" is the key word. Reply to this
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