More than 130 people turned out last week for the Public Information Open House held by the Georgia Department Transportation (GDOT) and contractor Archer Western on the proposed six-month closure of the interchange of Jimmy Daniell Road with SR 316.
Attendees had the opportunity to view two sets of easels with maps of the proposed detour and of the design for the grade-separated diamond interchange already under construction.
For an estimated six months, access to SR 316 at Jimmy Daniell Road will be completely blocked.
Traffic north of SR 316 will be detoured along Jimmy Daniell Road, Atlanta Highway, and U.S. 78.
Traffic south of SR 316 will be detoured along Jimmy Daniell Road, Mars Hill Road, and U.S. 78.
Eastbound and westbound traffic on SR 316 will continue during the six months of the planned detour, according to Kyle Collins, Communications Program Manager for GDOT.
Reason For Detour
The initial contract for construction of the Jimmy Daniell Road interchange allowed for a 45-day detour for traffic from Jimmy Daniell Road seeking to enter SR 316 westbound.
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| Detour Route (Click To Enlarge) |
Archer Western and its design team have determined that the six-month full closure of the interchange “is more viable,” according to a handout at the Jan. 22 Public Information Open House. That planned change necessitated the meeting.
The closure will allow for the construction of a new bridge overpass to carry Jimmy Daniell Road over SR 316 and “accommodate the new interchange configuration,” according to the handout.
“The proposed road closure and detour is estimated to last approximately six months,” the handout states.
GDOT and Archer Western say the proposed six-month detour will make it possible to eliminate the existing signal at Jimmy Daniell Road and SR 316 “roughly 10 months earlier” than originally planned.
The full Jimmy Daniell interchange may be functional six months earlier than originally planned, according to GDOT.
Voicing Concern
People were lined up outside the door at the gym behind Mars Hill Baptist Church, 2661 Mars Hill Road, when the session began at 5 p.m.
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| Phil Royer From Archer Western With Maps 1/22/2026 |
The Open House continued to 7 p.m., but the crowd thinned out by 6 p.m. Collins said the official count for the evening was 138 attendees.
Attendees had the opportunity to direct questions and concerns to representatives of GDOT and Archer Western standing at the easels and around the room. They also were given the opportunity to complete and turn in a “comment card” asking for approval or disapproval of the plans.
That form also is available online, with a Feb. 2 deadline for providing comment.
The handout stated that “Detour timing will be scheduled to minimize impacts during the school year,” but participants in the session could be heard voicing concern about the additional time that school busses will have to travel because of the detour.
Others were concerned about the increased time required to be reached by emergency vehicles. Oconee County Fire Stations No. 8 is on Virgil Langford Road, south of SR 316.
Residents of Silver Leaf and Deerbrook subdivisions expressed concern that traffic will flow through their subdivisions to use the open SR 316 interchange at Julian Drive as an alternative to following the official detour route.
Traffic also will be able to move along Meriweather Drive through the Jennings Mill neighborhood, though that also is not part of the designated detour.
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