Roswell officials say they’ve found a way to make changes to the design of the Historic Gateway Project and narrow traffic lanes along the Atlanta Street corridor known as Ga. 9.
Officials want to widen planned medians by two feet, which would narrow the traffic lanes.
The Gateway project would widen Ga. 9 from 3 to 4 lanes and include medians, roundabouts and new turn lanes — extending from the Chattahoochee River up to Marietta Highway at Roswell Square.
Roswell officials have been asking the Georgia Department of Transportation to reduce the lane widths in the $58 million project, which is 70% funded by the state agency. Mayor Kurt Wilson and City Council were seeking to reduce the lane widths from 11 feet to 10.5 feet to help prevent accidents from heavy traffic cutting through the corridor.
Councilman Mike Palermo said GDOT’s response to that request suggested Roswell paint stripes in the lanes thereby creating a narrower pathway for vehicles.
Instead, Roswell is requesting approval of a design variance from GDOT which would widen medians planned to be along the project corridor north of Azalea Drive. The medians would be widen from five-feet to seven-feet, which would narrowing the traffic lanes on each side of the road by one foot.
Wilson credited Palermo with the concept during a March 28 committee meeting.
During a Monday meeting, City Council approved the $100,000 cost of the design changes that would be made by WSP engineering firm.
If GDOT approves the variance, implementing the changes could cost Roswell more than $500,000, according to Director of Transportation Jeffrey Littlefield.
A January letter to Roswell from GDOT Chief Engineer Margaret Pirkle said the agency would process Roswell’s request as soon as possible upon receipt.
The actual start date of construction for the Historic Gateway Project has been in question. Last summer, construction was expected to start in 2026, which is a three-year delay. The Georgia Department of Transportation website shows a construction start date of 2028. However, GDOT spokeswoman Natalie Dale said last month that the website was displaying incorrect information due to a technical error.
The year for the start of construction remains 2026, she said.
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