Interstate 285 | |||||||
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The Perimeter | |||||||
Route information | |||||||
Maintained by GDOT | |||||||
Length: | 63.98 mi (102.97 km) | ||||||
Existed: | 1963 – present | ||||||
Major junctions | |||||||
Beltway around Atlanta | |||||||
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Location | |||||||
Counties: | Clayton, Fulton, Cobb, Dekalb | ||||||
Highway system | |||||||
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Interstate 285 (I-285) is an Interstate Highway loop encircling Atlanta, Georgia, for 63.98 miles (102.97 km). I-285 also carries unsigned State Route 407 (SR 407), and is colloquially referred to as The Perimeter. Suburban sprawl has made it one of the most heavily-traveled roadways in the United States, and portions of the highway slow, sometimes to a crawl, during rush hour. It is also signed as Atlanta Bypass on I-75/I-85.
It is estimated that more than two million people use the highway each day, making it the busiest Interstate in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
I-285 is eight to 12 lanes wide, with the northern part from I-75 to SR 400 to I-85 the most heavily traveled. One segment of the highway near Spaghetti Junction (a large, flyover highway interchange northeast of Atlanta) with I-85 widens to 18 lanes, including collector-distributor lanes. Exits are numbered clockwise, starting at the southwestern-most point at I-85, and ending just east of there where it meets I-85 again near Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport.