I-85 Atlanta Collapse And Aftermath

[JonInMiddleGA]

If you've planning to travel through Atlanta on I-85 any time soon ... change your plans.

85 closed indefinitely (as in months) at the busy Piedmont Rd area after a fire caused a bridge collapse this evening.

It's going to be an unholy mess for the foreseeable future to get into or out of Atlanta on that northeast corridor.

[NobodyHere]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

If you've planning to travel through Atlanta on I-85 any time soon ... change your plans.

85 closed indefinitely (as in months) at the busy Piedmont Rd area after a fire caused a bridge collapse this evening.

It's going to be an unholy mess for the foreseeable future to get into or out of Atlanta on that northeast corridor.

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Spoiler

[digamma]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

If you've planning to travel through Atlanta on I-85 any time soon ... change your plans.

85 closed indefinitely (as in months) at the busy Piedmont Rd area after a fire caused a bridge collapse this evening.

It's going to be an unholy mess for the foreseeable future to get into or out of Atlanta on that northeast corridor.

With this being just below the 400 split, I really can't fathom the work around for now. What a mess.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally Posted by digamma

With this being just below the 400 split, I really can't fathom the work around for now. What a mess.

Yeah...crazy. People from Gwinnett go.....285 South to I-20? Trying to remember how many lanes 285 has over that way, but I'm reasonably certain it can't handle the 85-South volume.

[miked]

That's about 2 miles from my house and my son goes to a Montessori down the street. Interestingly we went out of town and drove to the airport around noon, guess we got lucky. My friend texted me that we will probably have to find an alternate way home from the airport next week. Can't wait to take 285 from the airport around 4pm.

[JonInMiddleGA]

The workarounds are going to get crazy & creative I suspect.

For us, for example, depending upon what part of ATL you need and such, it's either cross country from Athens to Conyers to take I-20 in OR it's straight down Hwy 78 all the way to Decatur.

If the southbound lanes remain closed as we're starting to suspect, my wife's commute (to Atlantic Station) will likely go from about 80 mins each way to more like two hours (given expectations about increased traffic on the alternates).

And coming home will be even worse. It was already nearly 2 hrs to get home, closer to 3 hrs home at rush hour times.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

The workarounds are going to get crazy & creative I suspect.

And it's only going to get crazier with the Braves set to open SunTrust Park on the corner of 75 and 285. A lot of workarounds to get up 400 involved going up 75 and cutting over, but then those folks had to be reminded of the new stadium.

There was also talk of going to 75 and going down to get the Atlanta United games at Tech's campus... thankfully most of those are on a Saturday, but there are a few Wednesday games in September.

[Ben E Lou]

Any estimates yet on a fix date? I assume we're talking months here. We have a July 4th trip to Columbus planned and we're thinking through timing on that one already.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Any estimates yet on a fix date? I assume we're talking months here. We have a July 4th trip to Columbus planned and we're thinking through timing on that one already.

6 months would be a miracle, I think.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Any estimates yet on a fix date? I assume we're talking months here. We have a July 4th trip to Columbus planned and we're thinking through timing on that one already.

VERY initial reactions I saw were talking 6-8 weeks ... but that was before people stopped to realize that the one that pancaked is unlikely to be the only one that has to be replaced.

The only official word is "indefinitely". Honestly, that's fair, since there's no chance they know the safety condition of not just the adjacent section but also adjoining sections up & down the line as well.


Just for fun for those who know the area, here's the actual closure list this morning:

-I-85 South is closed at the Ga. 400 northbound ramp, and traffic is being forced onto Ga. 400.

- Ga. 400 southbound is closed at Sidney Marcus Boulevard. The Ga. 400 ramp to I-85 North is open.

- Traffic is being forced off I-75/85 North to take I-75 North at the Brookwood split.

- Traffic on I-75 South can’t take the ramp to the I-85 North exit 251.

- There is no access to I-85 South from Chamblee Tucker, Shallowford, Clairmont or North Druid Hills roads.

The phrase "you can't get there from here" comes to mind

[digamma]

New Braves stadium location looking good in the preseason!

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by digamma

New Braves stadium location looking good in the preseason!

Well, it depends on where you're coming from I guess.

The 85 collapse impacts mostly Gwinnett/northeast fans, the rest a lot less so.

[henry296]

The Atlanta road first seems similar to what happened in Pittsburgh last fall which closed one of the bridges into the city for four weeks. The one difference, is that it looks like a larger piece of the road collapsed in this situation and in Pittsburgh it was just a support beam that was bent by a fire.

[JonInMiddleGA]

One of the more interesting aspects of this situation to me will be answers about why what looks like a fair-sized Home Depot worth of materials was stored under that bridge. And how long had it been there (photos of an unconfirmed date last night suggested they -- or other similar materials -- may have been there since 2012)

So far that's been on the backburner a bit while people simply figure out how to move around town but I have to think that either some DOT employee (there's been indications that this was DOT approved storage, if not actual DOT storage) will be taking early retirement OR that some state contractor is going to find themselves sued for a staggering amount of money.

[miked]

I guess I'll stop scheduling my meetings at GT since I'll have to go from Clairmont to the 10th street exit. Also, I take the HOV lane to Lindbergh to drop my son off at school, sounds like that will be closed and I'll be onbacked up surface streets. I think 6 months is a good estimate.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

The 85 collapse impacts mostly Gwinnett/northeast fans, the rest a lot less so.

It also impacts the 400/directly north fans as well, as the part of 85 that collapsed is the part that merges to 400.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

It also impacts the 400/directly north fans as well, as the part of 85 that collapsed is the part that merges to 400.

I mentally lumped those in as Gwinnetians honestly. (I know they aren't, I was being lazy). "Northeast" would be more accurate for sure though.

[larrymcg421]

I usually take 78 to 285 to 400 for work. I was worried about the extra 285 traffic, but luckily I go in after rush hour, so it wasn't so bad.

[ISiddiqui]

Just beware for next week, I know a lot of people who stayed home today, or did telework today, or their work was delayed open or closed for the day.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Just beware for next week, I know a lot of people who stayed home today, or did telework today, or their work was delayed open or closed for the day.

And apparently spring breaks were both relieving AND creating traffic changes too. And DeKalb schools punted & just closed a day early, so that surely helped some spots as well.

[ISiddiqui]

Yep, was thinking about Dekalb schools closing. I guess they figured, Spring Break is next week, let's take a week to figure this crap out before we do it.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Repurposing a status from my FB to throw something in here. For those who didn't see the local coverage & some of the details, there was a fire crew working the blaze beneath the bridge. They were pulled out (had to be ordered out rather forcefully I gather) ... with an estimated two minutes to spare. A captain saw the concrete starting to crumble and pulled the crew just in time.

A little bit lost amidst the traffic insanity that is being created by the I-85 situation is something I have to mention: the good news that despite fire & bridge collapse, there were no injuries reported.
I know a few firefighters, I know a little about how they tend to tick. My best guess is that it wasn't easy to get them to pull back from an active battle, and that ordering them to do so wasn't a call anybody wanted to make.
I'm just thankful that training & judgment coincided and that this story wasn't a lot worse than it is.

[Ben E Lou]

The Domino Effect Of The Atlanta Highway Collapse - The Drive

Splitting this out into its own thread.

[tarcone]

I have driven through Atlanta once. And it was the last time. We go to Florida from St Louis and Atlanta is the shortest route. But It sucked.
We drive through Alabama now.

I wonder if our trip will be impacted this Summer by people avoiding Atlanta on alternate routes, like we do?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by tarcone

I wonder if our trip will be impacted this Summer by people avoiding Atlanta on alternate routes, like we do?

No, unlikely. Your path & replacements for the most impacted routes shouldn't intersect.


edit to add: Think of it as opposite sides of ATL basically.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

The Domino Effect Of The Atlanta Highway Collapse - The Drive

Splitting this out into its own thread.

Odd that they would start that article with airport passengers, as even they acknowledge that the majority of those "arriving" at Hartsfield are just connecting & won't travel on the highway. It's rail freight & trucking that really matter - is 85 near those hubs, or is 85 more of a local traffic chokepoint that'll also affect inter-state trucking?

Charlotte transportation looking better & better (though Mecklenberg County needs to expand that I-77 corridor near Lake Norman ASAP.)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Odd that they would start that article with airport passengers, as even they acknowledge that the majority of those "arriving" at Hartsfield are just connecting & won't travel on the highway. It's rail freight & trucking that really matter - is 85 near those hubs, or is 85 more of a local traffic chokepoint that'll also affect inter-state trucking?

Charlotte transportation looking better & better (though Mecklenberg County needs to expand that I-77 corridor near Lake Norman ASAP.)

In theory, pass-thru traffic isn't supposed to be on that portion of I-85 anyway, should be on I-285. Now those trucks will feel the impact of the sizable increase in traffic coming soon to 285, so it's not so much "them" as it is "the rest of us"

[rjolley]

Feel for you guys in the Atlanta area. We used to live in Stone Mountain and I've made the drive through that area for work and basketball. When I first read about it, I thought they were referring to Spaghetti Junction, which would've been a nightmare. The impacted area is just as bad, though...

Glad no one was hurt.

[NobodyHere]

3 charged in ‘maliciously set’ Atlanta highway fire may have been smoking crack - The Washington Post

[Noop]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

3 charged in ‘maliciously set’ Atlanta highway fire may have been smoking crack - The Washington Post

Crack melts steel?

Seriously this is could have been much worst.

[NobodyHere]

Originally Posted by Noop

Crack melts steel?

Seriously this is could have been much worst.

Well crackheads melted some steel or whatever the support posts were made of.

I just personally hope terrorists don't get any ideas from this.

[cuervo72]

I always think that initially when things like this happen, but then I wonder "well jeez, do terrorists have no brainstorming or critical thinking skills?"

[molson]

Thank god the terrorists are dumb enough to focus on planes. There's so much easier damage to be had.

[ISiddiqui]

Well holy crap, GDOT says I-85 will be open by June 15.

BREAKING: I-85 to reopen by June 15, officials say

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Well holy crap, GDOT says I-85 will be open by June 15.

BREAKING: I-85 to reopen by June 15, officials say

Dat article doe ... says the guy charged was under the bridge "talking about smoking crack" shortly before the fire.

Must have been a helluva incendiary conversation.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Must have been a helluva incendiary conversation.

[stevew]

Isn't there something dumb like literally 1 railway bridge that connects train traffic from one side of the Mississippi to the other? I know I've read about it somewhere.

At least I have to think that this crack induced trashfire that caused a vital highway shutdown should be as infamous as the Lake Erie on fire Cleveland story 30 years from now.

[JonInMiddleGA]

anecdotal but here ya go ...

Wife's normal trip to the office - from Athens to Atlantic Station (for those who will get that) - is around 1h 20m, give or take 10m.

Today, going here to Conyers & then hitting I-20 to go into the city?
2h 45m

[Ben E Lou]

oof

[Shkspr]

Originally Posted by stevew

Isn't there something dumb like literally 1 railway bridge that connects train traffic from one side of the Mississippi to the other? I know I've read about it somewhere.

According to this list, as of a decade ago there were 44 railway bridges across the Mississippi - 8 passenger, 7 heavy freight, 18 medium freight, and 11 light freight. We're probably good on that count for a while, though I'm sure a few billion spent on refurbishing these bridges wouldn't go amiss.

[stevew]

I think I'm either thinking of the UP Clinton Bridge or something called the Government Bridge in Davenport. Both are super old and vital.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

oof

Return trip was at least better.

closer to the normal (tho she did leave at 4p), the difference being that she could do the Buford Hwy connector thing and just eventually get back to 85 and then 316 like usual.

Mornings though, there's no good alternate from here going southbound.

[stevew]

Hitler is mad about the I-85 Bridge Collapse in Atlanta! - YouTube

[Ben E Lou]

Ummm..ok.

ATLANTA TRAFFIC: Mayor Reed warns drivers 'don't leave home Monday without a full tank of gas' | WSB-TV

[tarcone]

Wow. I bet gas prices take a big jump in the Atlanta area.

[miked]

Came home from the Atlanta airport on Tuesday around 4:30, got home close to 6pm (Clairmont Road). Had to get off at Freedom Parkway and go down Ponce to Briarcliff, Waze put me through Emory on some side streets, was silly. Next morning back to the airport around 11am, only took about 40 minutes or so taking Briarcliff all the way to Carter Center and on 85. Came home at midnight the next night and took 25 minutes taking 85 the whole way.

Tomorrow morning have to get my son to school near the damage, Lindbergh and Cheshire. I think the HOV exit at Lindbergh will be open, but think I heard they are suspending HOV requirements, which means anyone can take it. Will probably take side streets to the tune of 30-40 minutes for a 10-15 minute ride.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Ummm..ok.

ATLANTA TRAFFIC: Mayor Reed warns drivers 'don't leave home Monday without a full tank of gas' | WSB-TV

Yep, made that mental note on the wife's behalf already. With spring breaks ending around here I guess they're fearing the worst.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Ummm..ok.

ATLANTA TRAFFIC: Mayor Reed warns drivers 'don't leave home Monday without a full tank of gas' | WSB-TV

"We're really worried about drivers being stranded without access to their air conditioning." ??? Forecast is a high of 79 & not particularly humid.

[Ben E Lou]

Yes, that was part of the reason for my reaction.

[miked]

Took it this morning, HOV lane closes at N Druid Hills and it goes down to 2 lanes by the Cheshire Bridge exit (I was getting off). It's going to be miserable tomorrow.