A large pothole on Interstate 75 northbound in Clayton County that caused significant traffic disruptions early Wednesday morning had appeared earlier this year.
Triple Team Traffic’s Mike Shields first told you about the interstate blockage on Channel 2 Action News This Morning.
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The Georgia Department of Transportation said the pothole along Meadowbrook Lane overpass between Mount Zion Boulevard and Jonesboro Road first appeared in May reopened, leading to a nearly 12-hour repair operation.
“A HERO operator did notice this what would equate to a large pothole at the bridge joint,” said Natalie Dale, spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Transportation.
Channel 2’s Candace McCowan was live at the scene for Channel 2 Action News at 6:00.
GDOT also said the bridge in question was inspected earlier this year.
“All bridges in the state of Georgia are inspected every other year, and that is about twice as often as the federal government requires states to do that,” Dale said.
Crews repairing the hole also checked the bridge’s stability.
“When you have that degradation to the bridge deck, and you can get all the way through to the bottom, what we saw was some crumbling of that bridge on to the roadway below,” she added.
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All northbound lanes were closed during rush hour, though three of five lanes were eventually reopened.
The roadway below was also blocked, leaving drivers frustrated.
“That is dangerous. That’s the main thing I look for, especially when I’m driving, I look for potholes,” Patricia Godwin said.
“It’s definitely an inconvenience. Knowing what’s going on up there, I understand why they have the barrier up,” Edwina Husband said.
While the roadway is completely open now, this might not be the end. After Wednesday’s pothole, there could be more roadway shutdowns ahead.
“We will be back out in this area. We will let y’all know making repairs to this as we work towards that permanent repair,” Dale said.
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