GA 400
Atlanta’s commuters rely heavily on the GA 400 Extension to facilitate commutes between work and home. Completed in 1993, the GA 400 extension got its start with funding through the 1987 Federal Highway Act, which provided $98 million for a “High Technology Demonstration Project” to bring electronic toll collection (ETC) using automated vehicle identification to the area. It was the first project of its kind in the United States. Today, about 119,000 people use the 6.2-mile system every weekday. SRTA brings convenience to motorists by offering the option of electronic toll collection. Approximately 41% percent of all vehicles traveling GA 400 use the windshield-mounted “Cruise Card,” for cashless payment of tolls.
The average weekday revenue collected at the toll plaza on GA 400 is approximately $59,000.00 per day. All tolls collected are used to pay down bond debt, operate and maintain the road, and assist in financing SRTA’s overall operations. SRTA’s Board, which is chaired by the Governor, is responsible for the accounting of these funds and annually adopts a budget allocating all revenue in order to ensure safe and efficient operations of the system.
The toll rate for most cars is .50 cents. See the attached Toll Rates Chart for toll amounts for multiple axles.
GA 400 Improvement Projects
In September 2010, the governing boards of the State Road and Tollway Authority – known as SRTA – and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) voted to extend the ground lease for the GA 400 Toll Road and the fifty-cent toll for up to 10 years. Toll revenues will be used to fund new transportation improvement projects along the Georgia 400 corridor.
SRTA and GDOT initially developed a list of 160 possible projects with input from the North Fulton Atlanta Mayors Association; Buckhead, North Fulton and Perimeter CIDs; Atlanta Regional Commission, Georgia Regional Transportation Authority and various city and county planning and transportation entities. Those projects were then reviewed based on their impact to GA 400 corridor, mobility, strategic objectives and project schedule. The short-list of projects (see attachments below) ranked the highest based on these criteria:
GA 400 Improvement Projects (pdf)
o A. I-85/GA 400 Connector Ramps (pdf)
o B. I-85 Southbound/GA 400 Southbound Merge Modification
o C. GA 400 Lane Widening from McFarland Parkway to SR 20
o D. GA 400 Managed Lanes Project form I-285 to McFarland Parkway
o E. GA 400 Northbound Third Transition Lane Extension at McFarland Parkway
o F. GA 400 ITS and HERO Expansion from McFarland Parkway to SR 20
o G. SR 140 (Holcomb Bridge Road) ATMS
o H. Mansell Road Triple Left Turn Lane (GA 400 to North Point Parkway)
o I. GRTA Xpress Bus Service on GA 400
o J. GA 400 Northbound Ramp Extension at Abernathy Road
o K. Improvements to GA 400 at Northridge Road Interchange
o L. Enhanced Maintenance Improvements along GA 400 Corridor