Officials have gathered for the groundbreaking ceremony of the SR 400 Express Lanes, a new 25.75km managed lanes project in Atlanta, Georgia. 

ACS Group companies ACS Infra (IRIDIUM) and FlatironDragados joined the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), the Georgia State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) and other partners at the event for the project. 

The public-private partnership will add capacity along State Route 400 between the North Springs Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) Station in Fulton County and McFarland Parkway in Forsyth County.  

Delivered through the SR 400 Peach Partners consortium, the project aims to improve travel reliability and safety on the corridor. 

SR 400 Peach Partners includes ACS Infra (IRIDIUM), Acciona and Meridiam as developer and equity sponsors. 

FlatironDragados and Acciona will lead construction, while Parsons will act as lead design engineer. GDOT and SRTA will work with the consortium under a long-term P3 agreement. 

ACS Infra CEO Steve DeWitt said: “This groundbreaking marks an important milestone for one of Georgia’s most critical transportation corridors. 

“In partnership with GDOT and SRTA, we are proud to deliver a project that will provide long-term mobility benefits, support economic growth, and improve the daily travel experience for the communities along SR 400 and the greater Atlanta metropolitan area.” 

Project backers have set the total investment at about $10.8bn, with a concession term of more than 55 years. Plans include a 5.5-year construction period followed by 50 years of toll operations. 

The scheme will add dynamically priced express lanes in each direction, while keeping the existing general-purpose lanes free to use. It also includes work linked to the SR 400/I-285 interchange, new bridges and corridor-wide technology systems intended to manage traffic flow and support safety. 

Project plans also include maintaining connections to existing MARTA services and allowing for future bus rapid transit improvements along the corridor. 

The financing package combines federal credit assistance through a TIFIA loan and tax-exempt private activity bonds (PABs), alongside committed equity investment. Construction will progress in phases across the corridor, with major field activity set to begin this spring. 

The project forms part of Georgia’s Major Mobility Investment Programme (MMIP) and represents the programme’s first revenue-risk procurement.