ATLANTA, GA — The Georgia Department of Transportation (Georgia DOT) State Transportation Board has approved selection of the apparent best value proposer for the I-285/I-20 West Interchange project (P.I. No. 0013918), one of the Major Mobility Investment Program (MMIP) projects west of Atlanta, Georgia. Legacy Infrastructure Contractors was named the apparent successful proposer and awarded the $1.248 billion contract to complete final design and construction, allowing this public private partnership to move forward.
Georgia DOT used a best-value procurement method for the design-build-finance project, which scores both technical approach and financial proposals. The selected private sector partner will reconstruct this heavily traveled interchange currently ranked as one of the most congested nationally.
“We’re excited to start the next phase of this project, which will improve safety for motorists and freight along this interchange ranked the fifth-worst truck bottleneck in the country by the American Transportation Research Institute,” Georgia DOT Project Manager Matthew Fowler said. "As part of Georgia's Freight Plan, this project is a great opportunity to alleviate congestion and enhance safety for all users."
The I-285/I-20 West Interchange limits begin along I-20, from the Factory Shoals Road overpass to the Hamilton E. Holmes Drive interchange, for 6 miles. Along I-285, the project begins just south of the Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway interchange and ends at the MLK Jr. Drive interchange, for 2 miles. The project will reconstruct and widen several interstate system-to-system ramps and add a combination of collector-distributor/connecting lanes and auxiliary lanes along I-20 west and I-285 north of the interchange.
Proposed improvements to the interchange include:
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- Removing left-hand ramp entrance and exit ramps from interchange
- Improving geometric design and vertical grades
- Constructing two-lane ramps within the interchange
- Constructing westbound collector-distributor lanes, or connecting lanes, from I-285/I-20 West Interchange to Fulton Industrial Boulevard
- Adding lanes along I-20 from Factory Shoals Road to Hamilton E. Holmes Drive
- Adding lanes along I-285 from Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway south to MLK Jr. Drive to accommodate interchange improvements
- Modifying/replacing bridge structures and ramps in interchange and along I-20 including those over the Fulton County Railway and the Chattahoochee River
The project has been in development since 2018, beginning soon after the MMIP was announced. Robust stakeholder and public engagement have taken place, including accepting official public comment on the project in September 2020, November/December 2022, and an executive summary comment period in June 2024.
Georgia DOT anticipates construction start in 2025. The project’s substantial completion is expected in 2030. The schedule is subject to change.
Legacy Infrastructure Contractors, LLC, consists of C.W. Matthews Contracting Co., Inc., as the lead construction contractor and Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering, PLLC, as the lead engineering firm. The Executive Summary of their proposal indicated that the team successfully maintains its position in the Georgia transportation market by training local talent and building projects in-state and nationally.
