The Georgia Department of Transportation announced that phase four and five of their I-16 and I-75 Interchange Improvement Project starts on Monday.
Danny Smith is a clinical sales representative for Boston Scientific, and is always traveling down the interstate for work. He says he knows the I-75 and I-16 intersection a little too well.
"It's very busy, and I do a lot of getting off of second street and hitting Riverside Drive, just to avoid it, because you never know when there's a wreck," Smith said.
There's also always construction.
"I don't know when it hadn't been going on. I can say three or four years I would say it's been going on, but it might have been going on longer than that!" Smith said.
Xavier Wytche is excited to hear about the move to phase four and five in the half billion dollar plan.
"I feel pretty good about it," Wytche said.
GDOT says phase four takes care of widening Second Street, adding sidewalks, an eastbound entrance and exit ramps.
They'll also finish building out I-16 eastbound, which started in phase one, but out toward Walnut Creek east of Macon.
Once the work is done they'll also restore full access to Spring Street from I-16 east.
"Some confirmation that is coming to an end. Definitely seeing it over the years, as it progressed, seeing it come to a climax really brings some reassurance to some people that have been able to see it. I don't want to be 80 years old learning how to drive on a new interstate, so I'm glad that I'm young and will still be able to see it," Wytche said.
In phase five, the spring street loop ramp will reopen, which will take away the Spring Street northbound left-turn lane that would usually lead you to I-16 west bound.
During phase five, the build-out of the west-to-north ramp for I-16 will also be completed.
That nearly wraps up the major roadwork.
Smith is looking forward to that day.
"I think the advantages will be great once they get done with it, everybody is tired of it and ready to be done," Smith said.
Phases four and five are expected to be completed in 2025. Phases one, two and three should be finishing about a year from now.
There is one more phase further off in the future, but it mostly centers around adding a railroad tunnel and moving some tracks.