Tom Moreland Interchange
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Tom Moreland Interchange, colloquially known as '' Spaghetti Junction'', is the
interchange Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...
of
Interstate 85 Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with I-95 in Petersburg, Virginia, ...
(I-85) and I-285, along with several access roads, in northern
DeKalb County, Georgia DeKalb County (, , ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 764,382, making it Georgia's fourth-most populous county. Its ...
, northeast of
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
and just to the south of Norcross in
Gwinnett County Gwinnett County ( ) is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. It forms part of the Atlanta metropolitan area, being located about northeast of Atlanta city limits. In 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the ...
. It is named for
Tom Moreland Thomas D. Moreland (born July 12, 1933July 24, 2023), for whom the Tom Moreland Interchange is named, was one of the United States's leading road building experts, and served as President of Moreland Altobelli Associates, Inc., since its incep ...
, a former commissioner of the
Georgia Department of Transportation The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) is the organization in charge of developing and maintaining all state and federal roadways in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. In addition to highways, the department also has a li ...
(GDOT) from 1975 to 1987. I-85 is a major traffic corridor from the northeastern suburbs of Atlanta in the Gwinnett County area into
downtown Atlanta Downtown Atlanta is the central business district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The largest of the city's three commercial districts (Midtown Atlanta, Midtown and Buckhead being the others), it is the location of many corporate and region ...
. I-285 is a
beltway A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist in reducin ...
around Atlanta. In the northern I-285 corridor, in the area from I-85 counterclockwise to
I-75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Southeastern United States, Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end ...
, there has been a large amount of development of office space. The design of Spaghetti Junction was intended to remove choke points and reduce congestion in the I-85 and I-285 interchange, which had been a cloverleaf.


Description

The interchange is a
stack interchange A directional interchange, colloquially known as a stack interchange, is a type of grade-separated junction between two controlled-access highways that allows for free-flowing movement to and from all directions of traffic. These interchanges e ...
. Because of a northeast-to-southwest ramp that passes over the fourth level of the interchange, Spaghetti Junction is a five-level stack interchange, not a traditional four-level stack. It contains additional ramps to accommodate traffic on four nearby side roads:
Buford Highway Buford Highway (also Buford Highway Corridor), a.k.a. the DeKalb International Corridor, and in the 1990–2000's as the DeKalb County International Village district, is a community northeast of the city of Atlanta, celebrated for its ethnic div ...
/
US 23 U.S. Route 23 or U.S. Highway 23 (US 23) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway between Jacksonville, Florida, and Mackinaw City, Michigan. It is an original 1926 route which originally reached only as far south a ...
, Chamblee–Tucker Road, Pleasantdale Road, and Northcrest Road. The interchange handles approximately 300,000 vehicles each day. It has 14 bridges, the highest rising , running from Northcrest Road to I-85 south.


History

The Tom Moreland Interchange was designed to replace a cloverleaf interchange dating back to 1958 that had earned the nickname "Malfunction Junction", and was redesigned and reconstructed as part of the Freeing the Freeways program intended to relieve congestion on Atlanta-area interstates.
HNTB HNTB Corporation is an American infrastructure design firm. Founded in 1914 in Kansas City, Missouri, HNTB began with the partnership made by Ernest Emmanuel Howard with the firm Waddell & Harrington, founded in 1907. One of the most trusted U. ...
served as the design consultant for the new interchange. In order to fast-track the construction, bidding contractors were required to choose from three major designs for the six major bridges: precast concrete segmental girders, welded steel-plate box girders, and cast-in-place concrete segmental box girders. The winning bidder chose the latter design. The contract for reconstruction of the interchange was awarded in October 1982 at a cost of $62.5 million (equivalent to $ in ), which was, at the time, the most expensive contract ever awarded by GDOT. Work began on January 10, 1983. On August 24, 1985, the first flyover ramp of the interchange opened, connecting I-85 northbound to I-285 westbound. Initially expected to be completed in June 1986, the project was completed on July 9, 1987, in a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The final cost also ballooned to $86 million (equivalent to $ in ).


Origin of nickname

The actual origin of the name, "Spaghetti Junction" in Atlanta is attributed to traffic reporter Dave Straub. In 1986, as construction was about midway completed on the massive ramp system, Straub was flying over it in a helicopter reporting a traffic jam and commented that it was beginning to look like an "overturned bowl of Spaghetti". He then commented, "I think I'll start calling it 'Spaghetti Junction.'" Listeners complained about Straub's use of the "food reference" in his traffic reports, but Straub insisted that it would become a household term. He stuck with it, and soon, merchants began advertising their locations as being just north or south of "Spaghetti Junction". While it is officially named "The Tom Moreland Interchange" in honor of its designer, that reference is rarely used and "Spaghetti Junction" is a major landmark in the city of Atlanta and beyond.


In popular culture

The interchange's colloquial name of "Spaghetti Junction" is mentioned in an eponymous song by the Atlanta-based
hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...
group
Outkast Outkast (sometimes written as OutKast) was an American hip-hop duo formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1992, consisting of Big Boi (Antwan Patton) and André 3000 (André Benjamin, formerly known as Dré). Widely regarded as one of the greatest an ...
in their 2000 album ''
Stankonia ''Stankonia'' is the fourth studio album by the American hip hop duo Outkast, released on October 31, 2000, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. The album was recorded in the duo's recently purchased Atlanta recording facility Stankonia Studios, ...
'' and in the film ''
Baby Driver ''Baby Driver'' is a 2017 action crime film written and directed by Edgar Wright. It stars Ansel Elgort as a getaway driver seeking freedom from a life of crime with his girlfriend Debora (Lily James). Kevin Spacey, Eiza González, Jon Ber ...
'', which is set in Atlanta. The interchange has also been pictured on a 2017 album cover, '' Quality Control: Control the Streets Volume 1''. The album features many rising artists that call Atlanta their home, including
Migos Migos () were an American hip hop group founded in Lawrenceville, Georgia, in 2008. The group was composed of rapper Quavo, his nephew Takeoff, and their "cousin" friend Offset. Quavo is from Athens, Georgia, while Offset and Takeoff were bo ...
,
Lil Yachty Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), known professionally as Lil Yachty, is an American rapper. He first gained recognition in August 2015 for his viral hit "One Night (Lil Yachty song), One Night", the lead single from his debut extend ...
, and
Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams II (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper. Known for his eccentric vocal style and fashion, he is considered an influential figure in modern hip hop music, hip hop and trap music ...
.


References

{{Reflist Transportation in Georgia (U.S. state) Interstate 85 Road interchanges in the United States U.S. Route 23 Doraville, Georgia