Former alignments of GA 139 and 314 around Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport

When an airport expands, the growing facility usually takes a lot with it. And in the case of the early 2000's runway expansion of Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, many changes were made to the highway system surrounding it. Both Georgia Highways 139 and 314 have not been immune to the airport's expansion. The first changes occurred in the early to mid 1970's. That expansion of the airport led to a rerouting of GA 139 and a change to the terminus of GA 314. The 1978 GDOT map (above right) shows the results of the 1970s expansion.

Nearly 30 years later, another runway expansion would alter the southern grounds of the airport. Along with other surface streets, GA 139 and 314 were greatly impacted. GA 139 now snakes its way through the airport grounds while GA 314 has been scaled back to end at GA 139 just inside the Perimeter (Interstate 285). The changes to both routes and various surface streets have left interesting pockets of former alignments of the two state highways within the airport's grounds. Back in 2004-2006, John Krakoff documented some of the surprises that were still left standing.

Former Northern Terminus of GA 314:

Looking North down former GA 314 at its prior northern terminus at what was once GA 139. The fence to the right is the current limits of the runway expansion. (John Krakoff)

What was at one time the first GA 314 shield southbound. As you can see, there's not much left of Highway 314. Running just below the horizon in this photo is the realigned GA 139. (John Krakoff)

At the old northern terminus of GA 314, you are no longer able to take a right turn onto what once was GA 139 South. (John Krakoff)

A zoomed in shot of a leftover GA 139 South shield. (John Krakoff)

Leftover signage:

An archaic Stop Ahead warning sign (John Krakoff)

A set of leftover GA 314 shields. (John Krakoff)

An aging 'JCT' GA 314 shield found along a surface street. (John Krakoff)

Current Northern GA 314 Terminus:

A 'JCT' South GA 314 shield is found along GA 139 North. (John Krakoff)

The 'END' GA 314 assembly marking the new northern terminus of GA 314. The expanded airport runway is located right behind the sign and fence. (John Krakoff)

Comments

Morgan Territory Road

Morgan Territory Road is an approximately 14.7-mile-long roadway mostly located in the Diablo Range of Contra Costa County, California. The roadway is named after settler Jerimah Morgan who established a ranch in the Diablo Range in 1857. Morgan Territory Road was one of several facilities constructed during the Gold Rush era to serve the ranch holdings. The East Bay Regional Park District would acquire 930 acres of Morgan Territory in 1975 in an effort to establish a preserve east of Mount Diablo. The preserve has since been expanded to 5,324 acres. The preserve functionally stunts the development along roadway allowing it to remain surprisingly primitive in a major urban area. Part 1; the history of Morgan Territory Road During the period of early period of American Statehood much of the Diablo Range of Contra Costa County was sparsely developed. Jerimah Morgan acquired 2,000 acres of land east of Mount Diablo in 1856 and established a ranch in 1857. Morgan Territory Road is

The 1915 Fine Gold Creek Bridge (Madera County)

The 1915 Fine Gold Creek Bridge is an early era arch concrete structure found alongside modern Madera County Road 200. The structure was modeled as a smaller scale of the 1905 Pollasky Bridge (still in ruins at the San Joaquin River) and was one of many early twentieth century improvements to what was then known as the Fresno-Fresno Flats Road. The 1915-era bridge was replaced with a modernized concrete span during 1947 but was never demolished. The original concrete structure can be still found sitting in the brush north of the 2023 Fine Gold Creek Bridge. Part 1; the history of the 1915 Fine Gold Creek Bridge The 1915 Fine Gold Creek Bridge lies near the site of the former mining community of Fine Gold. Mining claims were staked at Fine Gold during the Mariposa War during 1850. The community was never very large but became a stopping point on the stage road between the original Fresno County seat at Millerton and Fresno Flats (now Oakhurst). The stage road eventually bypas

San Francisco's Broadway Tunnel

The Broadway Tunnel in San Francisco is a structure at Russian Hill which connects the neighborhood Chinatown to North Beach. The tunnel was included in the 1948 San Francisco Trafficways Plan as a connector between the Central Freeway and Embarcadero Freeway. The structure was completed in December 1952 and spans 1,616 feet through Russian Hill. The Broadway Tunnel was designated as the Robert C. Levy Tunnel in 1986. Part 1; the history of the Broadway Tunnel Following the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848 San Francisco would see a major population boom. The city would expand from the shores of San Francisco Bay inland towards the many steep hills. The hills of San Francisco would prove to be a major hinderance towards the expansion of city. Roads were generally plotted over the tops of hillsides and had steep grades. Russian Hill in particular was one of the steepest and contained numerous streets with grades in excess of twenty percent. Broadway can be seen cros

Gribblenation

Search This Blog