Transportation/Transit

Pleasant Hill Road at I-85 Interchange

While the Pleasant Hill Road at I-85 Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) continues to function efficiently today, as traffic continues to grow on Pleasant Hill Road, traffic levels will begin to exceed the DDI’s capacity. Later this decade, the DDI’s operation will have an unacceptable level of service. Efforts are beginning to visualize the future of Pleasant Hill Road and the interchange with I-85.

The Gwinnett Place CID has prepared conceptual layouts, traffic analysis, potential right-of-way impacts and cost estimates for a series of improvements around Pleasant Hill Road and I-85. In partnership with the Gwinnett County Department of Transportation, the I-85 at Pleasant Hill Road Interchange Modification Report (IMR) was completed in November 2025 and has been submitted to the Georgia Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration for review and comment.

An interim project is being considered to add triple right-turn lanes at the southbound-off ramp with signal modifications. Currently in the survey-database and concept development phase.

Connected Vehicle Integration and Deployment for Gwinnett Place

The Georgia Department of Transportation’s Regional Connected Vehicle Program is an opportunity for the CID to help improve safety and allow for better traffic management within the Gwinnett Place area. The CID’s participation in this program resulted in connected vehicle roadside units (RSUs) being installed in forty-five traffic signals along Pleasant Hill Road, Satellite Boulevard, Club Drive, Steve Reynolds Boulevard and Old Norcross Road. The RSUs are necessary to broadcast safety messages to vehicles equipped to receive those messages. As a funding partner with the Georgia Department of Transportation and the Gwinnett County Department of Transportation, the CID contributed funds to the program to equip intersections within Gwinnett’s central business district. The purpose of the project is to provide connectivity for first responders and all road users by reducing vehicle travel time.

Satellite Boulevard at Pleasant Hill Road Intersection Improvement Project, M-1349-01

The CID continues to explore additional intersection design alternatives to improve the congested Satellite Boulevard at Pleasant Hill Road intersection. Currently operating at a Level of Service (LOS) D, traffic studies show that an increase in vehicular activity will likely cause the intersection to fail. The proposed intersection improvement project will provide a major capacity improvement and positions the intersection for future travel demand at a central location in the CID. Concept plans for the intersection will be developed in coordination with the revitalization of the Gwinnett Place Mall site.

 

Steve Reynolds Boulevard (Satellite Boulevard to Club Drive), F-1513-01

Traffic along the Steve Reynolds Boulevard corridor continues to increase as it has become a major alternative to Pleasant Hill Road. This project will limit lane drops from one intersection to the next by reconfiguring the lanes along this section of Steve Reynolds Boulevard to maximize its ability to convey traffic more efficiently. It is anticipated that driver expectations may also be better met, resulting in fewer crashes as weaving movements will be reduced. The project will construct a third southbound through lane on Steve Reynolds Boulevard at Satellite Boulevard, northbound dual left turn lanes on Steve Reynolds Boulevard at Venture Drive, a northbound right turn lane on Steve Reynolds Boulevard at Shackleford Road, and southbound triple left turn lanes on Steve Reynolds Boulevard at Club Drive. It will also include the construction of traffic signal upgrades throughout the corridor. Construction is anticipated to begin late 2025/early 2026.

McDaniel Farm Park Connector, F-1287-01

To achieve greater walkability in the district, the Gwinnett Place CID is developing a strategy for connecting residential, commercial, and recreational destinations throughout the greater Gwinnett Place area. The Gwinnett Place CID has proposed a network of trails to increase walkability and improve the pedestrian experience in the immediate Gwinnett Place area to connect with Gwinnett County’s Greenway system. By creating safer, more scenic, and direct pedestrian routes, along with providing added transportation options to reduce vehicular traffic, these trails can help promote redevelopment throughout greater Gwinnett Place.

The construction of a multi-use path along Commerce Avenue from the Gwinnett Place Mall site Ring Road across Satellite Boulevard and continuing on Commerce Avenue to McDaniel Farm Park provides a pedestrian and cycling connection from the Gwinnett Place Mall redevelopment site to a major Gwinnett County park. This connection will improve quality of life and livability for current and future residents and workers in the area, allowing them to walk or bike to a park without the need to drive a vehicle. This project also provides a connection between the redevelopment site and a possible Commerce Avenue station along the proposed Satellite Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line. This improvement also ties to the Loop Trail, a proposed Signature Trail in Gwinnett County’s Countywide Trails Master Plan. This connection will ultimately provide access to the Gas South District, Shorty Howell Park, Peachtree Ridge Park and numerous other pedestrian and bike destinations in western Gwinnett County. This project forms one of several proposed spokes of a connected trail network extending from the Ring Road out in several directions and connected by a pedestrian boulevard proposed to be constructed along the mall site’s Ring Road. The project consists of constructing a 10- to 12- foot multiuse path along the southside of Commerce Avenue between Satellite Boulevard and McDaniel Farm Park. Gwinnett DOT has issued a notice to proceed with design of the project. The project is currently in the surveying and data collection phase of the project. Right-of-way acquisition began during summer 2025. Anticipate to begin construction in late 2026.

The Gwinnett Place area traffic system consists of fifty-seven signalized intersections with primary corridors including Pleasant Hill Road, Satellite Boulevard, Steve Reynolds Boulevard, and Club Drive. The Gwinnett Place system also includes two interchanges with I-85, a half diamond at Steve Reynolds Boulevard and a diverging diamond interchange (DDI) at Pleasant Hill Road. Pleasant Hill Road maintains heavy volumes throughout the day with additional commuter travel during the peaks. Satellite Boulevard includes fourteen intersections and is parallel to I-85. It is a popular alternate route to I-85 with heavy peaks during the AM and PM. Steve Reynolds Boulevard, combined with Club Drive, are a popular alternative route to Pleasant Hill Road as it circumvents some of the congestion surrounding Gwinnett Place Mall.

Traffic Responsive Signal control systems (TR) are useful in areas with heavy traffic volumes and unpredictable traffic patterns. The system reacts to changes in traffic demand and then implements timing plans most suited for the traffic conditions. It works well along popular alternative or bypass routes that are impacted by weather, incidents, seasonal variations, or planned special events. The Gwinnett Place system is an ideal location for a TR system because of the heavy and often variable volumes along Pleasant Hill Road, alternate route options for I-85 and Pleasant Hill Road, and volume variation on weekends due to traffic generated by area retail. The goal for the Gwinnett Place TR system is to run the most suitable traffic control patterns based on traffic volumes.

As outlined in the ACTivate Gwinnett Place plan, the CID has prepared construction plans to transform Mall Boulevard and Gwinnett Place Drive into complete streets. The designs call for reducing vehicular traffic lanes to transition space within the existing right-of-way to provide sidewalks, green space, and multi-modal travel options; thereby, converting the two roadways from a car-only corridor to complete streets, with limited impact to the level of service of the roadway’s traffic capacity. Beginning first with Mall Boulevard, the complete street will become a three-lane roadway section; two travels lanes with a center turn lane. A 6′ wide sidewalk will be added to the south side of the roadway with a landscape strip buffer between the roadway and sidewalk. A 38′ wide corridor is then created on the north side which will provide for linear green space serving as a sidewalk, a multi-use corridor for cyclists; all in a park-like setting, infusing the area with opportunities to move between parcels safely on foot, on bike and by car.

For the Mall Boulevard project, Gwinnett County DOT has completed right of way acquisitions. Construction will begin as redevelopment progresses at the Gwinnett Place Mall site.

Mall Boulevard and Gwinnett Place Drive complete street plans

The project will consist of the installation of a possible pedestrian bridge over Pleasant Hill Road. The construction of a pedestrian overpass would provide a safe and efficient connection between the proposed Gwinnett Place Mall redevelopment site and retail, hospitality, and residential destinations south of Pleasant Hill Road. Currently, Pleasant Hill Road is a high-volume road which carries over 60,000 vehicles per day with six travel lanes, thus a grade separated pedestrian overpass would be the safest option to move pedestrians and cyclists across the roadway.

Concept planning and preliminary engineering for the project is underway including a pedestrian study to determine the location and type of pedestrian crossing. A final report is due late summer 2025. 

Beginning concept planning later in 2025, this project will extend southbound left-turn lanes on Breckinridge Boulevard and add signage on eastbound Pleasant Hill Road directing traffic to East Liddell Road and Liddell Lane to access Shackleford Road. The project also proposes constructing a new eastbound right-turn lane on Pleasant Hill Road to Shackleford Road.

Pleasant Hill Road is very congested at this location due to high traffic volumes as it approaches I-85. While longer-term measures are needed to relieve this congestion, several interim improvements can be made. The extension of the dual left turn lanes on southbound Breckinridge Boulevard will improve this movement and may allow additional signal time to be dedicated to other phases of the intersection. The right turn from eastbound Pleasant Hill Road to Shackleford Road is heavy and there is no right turn lane for this movement. The right turn lane addition would allow for better tra­ffic flow on Pleasant Hill Road and allow for safer right turns onto Shackleford Road. The addition of signage at the intersection of Pleasant Hill Road and East Liddell Road directing traffic to use East Liddell Road as an alternative route to Shackleford Road may also provide some relief to the Pleasant Hill Road at Shackleford Road intersection.

Currently in concept planning and design, the project consists of adding an 8-foot sidewalk along the north side of Venture Drive which could one day connect the Gwinnett Place Mall area to the future Piedmont Pathway on West Liddell Road, a signature trail identified in Gwinnett County’s Countywide Trails Master Plan. Right-of-way plans were received in May 2025. Anticipate 90% plans to be completed by the end of summer 2025 with final plans expected to be submitted by the end of 2025.

In partnership with the Gwinnett DOT, the CID prepared a traffic analysis, roadway layouts, and cost estimates for intersection improvements along Pleasant Hill Road from Old Norcross Road to Club Drive. The CID collected traffic volume data to forecast future traffic conditions. The traffic analysis included five major components: data collection, crash analysis, existing capacity analysis, design traffic projections, and future capacity analysis. As part of the six-month analysis, the CID analyzed the pedestrian and bicycle movements along the corridor and at each location when developing recommendations for the ideal roadway configuration at each intersection. Plans are underway to move forward with several of the identified intersection improvements. Pleasant Hill Road Corridor Final Report and Appendix.

As a result of the study, the Pleasant Hill Road at Koger Boulevard/Crestwood Parkway intersection improvement project was identified. The project consists of intersection improvements to add dual left-turn lanes on eastbound and westbound approaches. Construction of the proposed improvements will begin Q1/Q2 2026.

 

The I-85 corridor remains one of the most congested corridors in the Atlanta region. New mobility options are needed to improve connectivity between major activity centers in Gwinnett and provide a high-capacity transportation alternative to automobile travel. To improve the quality of life and the economic livelihood of Gwinnett’s central business district, the CID has led a series of transit studies to address these needs. In partnership with the Atlanta Regional Commission, Gwinnett County, the Gateway 85 Gwinnett CID, the Sugarloaf CID, and the Gwinnett Place CID completed the Satellite Boulevard to Jimmy Carter Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Study.

Over the years, the CID has studied the potential benefits of serving the I-85 corridor with transit:

• Satellite Boulevard to Jimmy Carter Boulevard BRT Study Executive Summary; Satellite Boulevard to Jimmy Carter Boulevard BRT Study (2021)
• Gwinnett Way Transit Study for Satellite Boulevard Corridor
• I-85 Corridor Alternatives Analysis Study Final Report
• I-85 Corridor Light Rail Transit Feasibility Study, Phase 2 presentation
• I-85 Corridor Light Rail Transit (LRT) Feasibility Study, Phase 2: Executive Summary
• I-85 Corridor Light Rail Transit (LRT) Feasibility Study, Overview of LRT Technologies presentation
• I-85 Corridor Light Rail Transit Feasibility Study, Phase 1 presentation