Drivers brace for headaches before GDOT begins bridge replacement project

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — The Georgia Department of Transportation will start a project to replace a 50-year-old bridge in Gwinnett County on Monday.

Channel 2's Berndt Petersen is in northeast Gwinnett, where crews will begin work to replace the overpass on Spout Springs Road over I-85. The bridge is near the Chateau Elan Golf Club and is a major thoroughfare into Hall County.

Not only will the bridge be replaced, but the road will also be widened. It's part of a much larger project to widen the interstate and relive congestion in the corridor.

Petersen spoke to parents, who were concerned about warnings from the school district that buses will be delayed.

"It's a total inconvenience for them to shut down a road during the school year," Cherylann McGee said. "For six months! That's absolutely absurd."

McGee isn't the only one upset about the inconvenience.

"It's gonna cause a big problem with school buses," homeowner Rick Whitley said. "Especially the ones that use that bridge."

The state has set up detours on either side of the span, but one bus driver privately told Petersen it'll add 26 minutes to her route.

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Petersen called a school system spokesperson, who said the schedule of some pickups and drop-offs could change by half an hour, but she insists students won't be late to school.

GDOT said they've tried to make the detours as short and direct as possible and they have notified first responders of potential delays.

McGee said she wishes there were another way.

"Maybe we could shut down on half the road," McGee said. "Like they do sometimes, instead of the complete road."

Locals do want a safer, wider bridge. John Maddalena often sees high school students walking right along the edge of the bridge.

"It's very dangerous going across it, especially with how narrow the bridge is," Maddalena said.

Parents whose children are on one of the 25 bus routes that cross the bridge are afraid they're going to be tardy.

"Anytime during school, traffic is heavy," McGee said. "Anytime people get off of work, traffic is heavy."

A school official told Petersen the first week of detours may be a little tough because all drivers, not just bus drivers, will be trying to figure it out.

Cox Media Group