Dramatic Changes Coming to Downtown bridges

November 25,2015

In about a year, people who drive along the Downtown connector through Atlanta will see a new look to some of the bridges spanning overhead. The bridges are getting a makeover, and many drivers say it's about time.

Next month, construction work will being on the Peachtree Street bridge where it crosses Interstate-85 at Brookwood. Structural repairs will strengthen the bridge, but developers say dramatic changes will transform the drab, concrete span into an Atlanta gateway, one with soaring arches that will reach three-and-a-half stories about Peachtree. And all the drivers passing under the bridge -- in more than 300,000 vehicles a day, during the week -- will see the arches and Atlanta's signature street's name in lights.

Work started earlier this month rehabbing and remodeling the other Peachtree Street bridge that crosses the connector between downtown and midtown. Improvements to the two Peachtree bridges, which include sidewalks separated from traffic by a short wall, should be complete by December 2016. Forecasts place the cost at about $6 million dollars, with funds coming from private sources, the Woodruff Foundation and from the state.