Ever wondered how many cars go through the two busiest intersections in Fayette County every day?
Not everyone in Fayette County travels through the intersections of Ga. Highway 54 and Ga. Highway 74 in Peachtree City or along Hwy. 54 at Ga. highways 85 and 92 in Fayetteville. But for those who do the growing congestion is old news, sometimes looking more like north metro Atlanta than what was once rural Fayette County.
So what are the traffic counts and what might the volume of traffic look like in coming years?
The most recent traffic count data from the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) showed 21,554 passing through the Hwy. 54/Hwy. 74 intersection in Peachtree City and 23,860 vehicles per day traveling through downtown Fayetteville.
And specific to Fayetteville, the numbers show 12,040 vehicles at the intersection of Hwy. 54 and Hwy. 85 and 11,820 vehicles at Hwy. 54 and Hwy. 92.
And while the two nearby north-south roadways may account for some duplication, the fact remains that, like some portions of Peachtree City, downtown Fayetteville is often a traffic nightmare that some Fayette residents would not have envisioned 20 years ago when Fayette County was already well into its economic boom.
Whether the traffic count numbers seem too low or too high, those figures represent GDOT’s data from 2009, the most recent year available. The numbers were averaged over a period of seven days as opposed to the five weekdays where the largest amount of traffic is on the road.
And what about that busy interchange at Interstate 85 and Hwy. 74 north of Tyrone? GDOT ramp count information from 2008, again the most current information available, shows a total of 45,558 vehicles using the interchange every day.
For those who sit in traffic gridlock daily in Fayetteville and Peachtree City and on Hwy. 74 north of Milam Road near I-85 the current state of congestion is obvious.
A look at the intersection of Hwy. 74 and Hwy. 85, south of Peachtree City and Fayetteville and in proximity to the most rural area of the county, shows a count of 10,920 vehicles per day.
Whether Fayette or any county in any metro area in America, there is another side to the story that, while not necessarily evident today, will be the topic of conversation in Fayette’s future. All bets may be off for the time being due to the recession, but unless it continues in perpetuity, the growth of metro Atlanta and southwest metro will eventually pick up.
And that is where the rest of the story comes in. While it may or may not occur sometime in the next few decades, Fayette’s 2040 population is expected to be 168,500 with an eventual build-out population estimated at approximately 180,000. That compares to the 106,000 people today, and their vehicles, that call Fayette home.
But there is more to the story. And that involves the multitude of motorists that will continue to travel through Fayette each day from surrounding counties and will continue to add appreciably to future traffic congestion.
Taking just two neighboring counties as an example, Coweta County’s 2010 population was 127,000. The 2040 population estimate is 248,500, a 107.2 percent increase. Clayton County’s population is expected to go from 281,100 in 2010 to 321,800 in 2040, an increase of 14.54 percent.
