Gwinnett Daily Post

LAWRENCEVILLE - The opening of new collector-distributor lanes on Interstate 85 northbound this weekend did not go as smoothly as transportation officials hoped.

About 50 people contacted the Georgia Department of Transportation during the weekend with questions about the new lanes, said DOT spokeswoman Teri Pope. The biggest concern for drivers was how to exit onto Old Peachtree Road.

While the lanes travel to just north of the exit, Pope wanted to remind drivers to use the same I-85 exit as in the past to reach Old Peachtree, as the collector-distributor system does not have an exit for the road.

"The CD system was designed to go from Pleasant Hill to Sugarloaf," Pope said. "There was a large traffic volume that ended at Sugarloaf. There was no need to continue it to Old Peachtree."

The northbound CD lanes have exits to Pleasant Hill Road, Boggs Road, Ga. Highway 316, Ga. Highway 120 and Sugarloaf Parkway.

If drivers do enter the CD lanes, which are parallel to the interstate, separating cars entering and exiting from the main highway, they can exit at Sugarloaf Parkway to get to Old Peachtree by using Satellite Boulevard or North Brown Road. Drivers can also continue on the lanes and get back on I-85, then take the Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road exit to get to Old Peachtree, Pope explained.