Overview: Why Truck Only Lanes?

Truck Only Lanes is a transportation design concept that separates heavy trucks from the general traffic stream of passenger vehicles, motorcycles, and light trucks.

While Truck Only Lanes are relatively rare on the U.S. highway system, sharp increases in truck traffic and projections of continued growth are causing many transportation agencies to look at Truck Only Lanes as a way to improve traffic flow and reduce the potential for truck-auto crashes.

In Georgia, a number of developments are driving the Truck Only Lanes discussion:

• Congestion in Metro Atlanta is getting worse.  A recent exploratory study by the State of Georgia Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) suggested constructing truck-only lanes in the Metro Atlanta region would decrease congestion.  
  
• Truck traffic is increasing statewide.  The 2035 Statewide Transportation Plan developed by GDOT’s Office of Planning shows that truck traffic in Georgia is increasing almost 50 percent faster than general traffic.
  
• Tomorrow’s highways are being planned right now.  GDOT is planning the ultimate build-out for I-75 and I-575 in Cobb and Cherokee counties.  To ensure all available design options are considered, GDOT needs to know whether Truck Only Lanes are warranted on this portion of the interstate system in Metro Atlanta.
  
• The Transportation community is talking.  The potential of Truck Only Lanes has spurred discussions in the trucking/freight industry and among the various planning organizations who guide development and investment.  There is much knowledge to build upon.  GDOT wants to leverage this knowledge as it evaluates the potential benefits of implementing Truck Only Lanes on a statewide level.
• There is more to implementing Truck Only Lanes than construction. Where do trucks park along or near limited-access highways?  What are the economic impacts of truck system improvements and how do we finance them?  What are the impacts on adjacent land uses?  There are many peripheral issues to study before decisions can be made.
  
  

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