Milton drivers face 5 months of detours for bridge construction, GDOT says

The bridge is roughly a mile north of Milton High School.

The construction work began last week and shut down Freemanville south of Providence and north of Mayfield roads except to local traffic, according to a map provided by GDOT.

Through traffic will not be allowed from Landrum Road, near where the bridge crosses the waterway, in order to prevent wear and tear on that road, a department spokesperson said in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Officials said Landrum Road itself will not be altered and will remain open to residents who live there.

The state transportation agency said its inspectors determined a new bridge was needed to replace the structure, originally erected in 1960.

The department said the old bridge was “deteriorating” and could only support half the load capacity of current design standards. This forced engineers to assign a maximum vehicle weight for the bridge because heavier vehicles “could overstress the structure,” a spokesperson said in an email to the AJC.

“Replacement is necessary to ensure long‑term safety for drivers and emergency responders,” GDOT said.

Credit: Ben Hendren

Credit: Ben Hendren

Construction of the new bridge was initially set to begin May 7 but was postponed until after the conclusion of the Fulton County school year about two weeks later.

GDOT says the project is expected to take 150 days to complete, but cautioned the timeline could be extended because of “any number of factors,” such as the recent rainy period that has produced soggy days and flooding in metro Atlanta.

In a Facebook post, the city of Milton listed Birmingham Highway along with Providence and Mayfield roads as detour routes and said the project could contribute to added congestion on those roads.

GDOT said the new bridge will include 11-foot travel lanes in both directions, shoulders and room for a future multiuse path on one side. Milton’s Deputy Public Works Director, Rob Dell-Ross, said this space might be used for the Milton Trails Blueprint project and said it gives the city “valuable flexibility over the bridge’s decades-long life span.”

GDOT said construction crews had already completed months of off-road preparation for the bridge project and work may continue even after the road reopens.

Milton officials, in a news release, advised residents to allow extra time for travel. The city also told citizens to monitor the city’s social media sites and check road signage for updates.