Upstate drivers will be taking a new route when merging from I-85 North to I-385 North by early this week.
Weather permitting, a temporary ramp was expected to be completed over the weekend that will shift driving lanes for the next nine months as crews work on the new interchange for the 85-385 Gateway Project. This $231 million project is the second largest undertaking in South Carolina Department of Transportation history.
The project overhauls the existing interchange with new bridges and flyovers as well as adds lanes to I-85 and I-38, resyncs traffic lights along Woodruff Road and rehabs roadways. Substantial work will be done by late 2018 with substantial completion scheduled for spring 2019.
The 85-385 Gateway Project is utilizing a design-build contract which will require Flatiron-Zachry, a joint venture of Flatiron Construction Corp. and Zachry Construction Corp, to design, obtain permits, acquire right-of-way, coordinate utility relocation and construct the new interchange – all under the oversight of SCDOT and FHWA.
The project is being financed in part with funding from Act 98 of 2013, which provided the SCDOT with additional funding for bridge, resurfacing and mainline interstate projects. Additional funding is being provided by the Federal Interstate Improvement Program and Greenville-Pickens Area Transportation Study Committee (GPATS.)