The project to revamp Savannah, Ga.'s interchange at Interstates 16 and 95 is more than a year from completion, but drivers may start to see bridge work wrap up towards the end of this year, the Savannah Morning News reported earlier in June.
The newspaper learned from the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) that the intersection's finish line has been pushed back a year to late 2023. Last August, GDOT anticipated the completion would likely wrap up by this fall.
The scope of the $317 million infrastructure improvement includes widening I-16, adding a new flyover bridge for I-95 northbound drivers, and increasing efficiency and safety at the interchange, particularly as freight trucks continue to account for more than 10 percent of the interchange's daily volume, the state transportation agency said.
Interstate 16 serves as a hurricane evacuation route and is "one of Georgia's busiest freight corridors as well as the gateway to Georgia's growing port in Savannah," GDOT spokesperson Jill Nagel told the Savannah news source.
That growth is expected to continue now that $1 billion in improvements are under way at the Savannah River's port facilities, and the recent harbor deepening project has been completed, allowing for bigger ships to dock.
"With the deepening of the [port], more freight traffic is anticipated, and this project allows greater capacity," Nagel said.
Currently, construction of one of three new interchange bridges is almost finished, she added, with it set to open later this year. In total, a dozen bridges and railroad tracks will be improved upon or added as part of the enterprise.
In her comments to the Savannah newspaper, Nagel said that segments of the improvement project will be opened to motorists as they are completed.
The loop ramps from I-95 southbound to I-16 eastbound, and I-16 westbound to I-95 southbound also are being rebuilt with "partial turbine" configuration ramps to provide safer, smoother merging, she noted.
In addition, I-16 will be widened to three lanes between I-95 and I-516, and the current lanes are slated to be widened between I-516 and Georgia Highway 307/Dean Forest Road, Nagel explained.
Construction to Last Almost Four Years
The I-16/I-95 Improvement Project began in 2016 with an environmental process by GDOT before the agency's chosen developer, Savannah Mobility Contractors (SMC), began the final design of the new interchange in 2018.
But it was not until two years later, in the first quarter of 2020, that boots-on-ground construction on the project finally got under way.
The project limits along the two interstates are, on I-16, from milepost 156 to milepost 164; and from mileposts 98-100 on I-95.
Other new upgrades to the freeway interchange include:
- A collector-distributor (CD) lane on I-95 northbound to help improve traffic flow and safety to and from both roadways. CD lanes run parallel to the main travel lanes of an interstate or highway, GDOT noted, connecting them to access roads or entrance ramps to improve traffic flow, speed, and safety.
- New and improved lighting at the crossing.
- The installation of Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) technology, including cameras and changeable message signs to provide real-time driving conditions.
- The installation of ramp meters at the Ga. 307/Dean Forest Road and Chatham Parkway on-ramps.
- A two-lane, emergency-use median crossover is being constructed on I-16 between I-95 and Ga. 307/Dean Forest Road to aid in evacuations; existing I-16 crossovers will remain in use until the new, two-lane crossover becomes operational.
- A series of noise barriers are being erected at various points on the project, according to GDOT.
Once it is completed, the I-16/I-95 Improvement Project should allow for 100,000 more vehicles to pass through the interchange every day and is part of the Georgia's Major Mobility Investment Program (MMIP).
"The [MMIP] projects were identified in 2016 to improve Georgia's metro regions by creating additional capacity, [thus] improving freight movement, providing operational improvements and efficiencies, enhancing safety, offering more reliable trip times, and decreasing travel times," Nagel said.
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