Georgia State Route 316

State Route 316 marker

State Route 316
University Parkway
Route information
Maintained by GDOT
Length: 38.9 mi[1] (62.6 km)
Major junctions
West end: I‑85 west of Lawrenceville
 
US 29 / US 29 Bus. / SR 8 northeast of Lawrenceville

US 78 / US 78 Bus. / SR 10 southeast of Bogart
East end: US 29 / US 78 / SR 10 Loop in Athens
Location
Counties: Gwinnett, Barrow, Oconee
Highway system
  • Georgia State Routes
← SR 315SR 317 →

State Route 316 (also known as SR 316, University Parkway, Georgia 316, or 316) is a state highway in northern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. It links the Atlanta metropolitan area with Athens, Georgia, home of the University of Georgia. The state route is 38.9 miles (62.6 km) in length.

The first 5 miles (8.0 km) of the state highway is a freeway, but the rest of the route is at-grade with traffic signals.

Despite SR 316 being concurrent with US 29 for most of its route, the road is nearly always referred to by its state route designation, while US 29 is usually associated with its original route.

GA 316 could possibly be extended as a freeway from its Buford Drive exit to the Athens Perimeter on its current route, hitting roads like Winder Hwy (US 29 Business), Sugarloaf Parkway (current interchange), SR 81/Loganville Highway, SR 53/Hog Mountain Road, and US 78/GA 10 (current interchange)---it was considered as a toll road in 2004, but was rejected.[2]

Route description

Gwinnett County

SR 316 begins at an interchange with Interstate 85 (I-85) exit 106, west of Lawrenceville. The route heads east, and then northeast, to an interchange with SR 120 in Lawrenceville. Then there is another interchange with Sugarloaf Parkway. Then the road has an interchange with Collins Hill road. Almost then immediately farther to the northeast is an interchange with SR 20/SR 124, also in Lawrenceville. Then the route becomes an at-grade highway. Northeast of the city, is a major intersection: US 29/SR 8 come in from the west and intersect SR 316. At the intersection, SR 8 continues to the northeast, concurrent with US 29 BUS, while SR 316 has a concurrency with the US 29 mainline. From then on, the speed limit is raised from 55 to 65 miles per hour. This is when GA 316 heads into rural Gwinnett county. Then, there is another interchange with the new Sugarloaf parkway freeway extension. Then there are intersections with Harbins Road south of Dacula, Drowning Creek Rd., and Fred Kilcrease road. Finally, the road heads over the Appalachee River into rural Barrow County.

Barrow County

South of Winder, the two routes intersect SR 81. To the east, at Bethlehem, is an intersection with SR 11. Then they encounter SR 53 southeast of Winder and at Statham they intersect SR 211.

Oconee County

Southeast of Bogart, the two routes intersect US 78/SR 10, which come in from the southwest. At the intersection, SR 10 continues to the northeast, concurrent with US 78 BUS, while the US 78 mainline joins the US 29/SR 316 concurrency. US 29/US 78/SR 316 intersect SR 10 Loop/SR 422 (Paul Broun Parkway/Athens Perimeter Highway) southwest of Athens. Here, SR 316 has its eastern terminus, while US 29/US 78 join SR 10 Loop/SR 422 in a concurrency to the east.

History

The first portion of the highway was completed as a freeway to Lawrenceville in 1960, after the city was bypassed by I-85. With the subsequent expansion of Atlanta into its eastern suburbs, travel between the capital and Athens became increasingly difficult as highways US 29 and US 78 were both routed through multiple business districts. Over the next decades, the state completed SR 316 in sections, weaving along the original route of US 29 in order to bypass communities and business districts, including Winder and the congested Atlanta Highway in Athens.

Gwinnett Junction with I-85

In 2006 the Department of Transportation upgraded the interchange of I-85 and SR 316 with new bridges and collector/distributor (C/D) lanes involving Pleasant Hill, Boggs, and SR 120. Westbound drivers going to Pleasant Hill Road could go there without being in the I-85 southbound lanes; traffic going to Atlanta had two new lanes with the left lane converted to an HOV lane.

Major intersections

CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
Gwinnett​0.00.0 I‑85 (Veterans Parkway) – Atlanta, GreenvilleWestern terminus
Lawrenceville4.26.8 SR 120 (Duluth Highway NW) – Lawrenceville, Duluth
6.410.3 SR 20 / SR 124 (Buford Drive NE) – Lawrenceville, Buford, Snellville, Grayson
​10.016.1
US 29 south / US 29 Bus. north / SR 8 (Winder Highway) – Lawrenceville, Dacula, Winder		Western end of US 29 concurrency; western terminus of US 29 BUS
Barrow​20.533.0 SR 81 (Loganville Highway) – Winder, Loganville
Bethlehem22.936.9 SR 11 (Monroe Highway) – Winder, Monroe
​26.642.8
US 29 Bus. / SR 8 / SR 53 (Hog Mountain Road) – Winder, Watkinsville		Western end of SR 8 concurrency; eastern terminus of US 29 BUS
Statham29.547.5 SR 211 – StathamSouthern terminus of SR 211
Oconee​35.056.3
US 78 west / US 78 Bus. east / SR 10 (Monroe Highway) – Bogart, Monroe		Western end of US 78 concurrency; western terminus of US 78 BUS
​38.962.6 US 29 north / US 78 east / SR 10 Loop – Athens, University of Georgia, Lexington, HartwellEastern terminus; eastern end of US 29, US 78, & SR 8 concurrencies; SR 10 Loop forms a loop around Athens
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Google (October 10, 2012). "Route of SR 316" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
  2. ↑ "http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/507"
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