Transportation and Visitation: How Georgia’s $1.8B I-75 Plan Could Make (or Break) Family Visits to Prisons

When Highway Plans Put Family Visits on the Line: Why Georgia’s $1.8B I-75 Proposal Matters Now

Hook: If you travel to visit a loved one in Georgia’s prisons, you already know visits are fragile—schedules, money, childcare, and long drives all have to line up. Now imagine a major I-75 building project that could shave an hour off your trip—or add a costly toll each way. Georgia’s newly proposed $1.8 billion I-75 expansion (announced in early 2026) could do either. Here’s how to plan for the change and how to push for infrastructure that supports family access, not barriers.

Key takeaway (up front): How the I-75 plan affects visitation

Major highway projects change more than commute times. They alter travel cost, timing, route options, public-transport connections, and even whether families can visit at all. The I-75 proposal announced in early 2026 to add toll express lanes through Henry and Clayton counties promises congestion relief. But toll lanes and design choices also risk increasing out-of-pocket travel cost and creating new mobility barriers unless local leaders build visitation-friendly measures into project planning now.

What changed in 2026 (brief context)

In January 2026 Georgia’s governor proposed spending roughly $1.8 billion to expand reversible express lanes on a 12-mile stretch of Interstate 75 in Atlanta’s southern suburbs. The plan would add a tolled lane in each direction to increase throughput. Nationwide, late 2025 and early 2026 continued a trend toward toll-based congestion management, but states are also experimenting with alternatives—like express transit and community mobility programs—to avoid regressive impacts on low-income travelers.

"A highway project can improve access for some and erect new costs for others. The difference is in how it’s planned." — transportation equity principle

Why visitation should be part of infrastructure planning

Visitation is a public good: it supports family stability, lowers recidivism, and helps reentry. Transportation projects that ignore the travel patterns of families visiting incarcerated people can unintentionally widen what advocates call "visitation deserts"—places where physical access to correctional facilities is so difficult that visits become rare or impossible.

Three concrete ways the I-75 project could change family visits

• Timing: Reduced congestion could shorten trips and increase feasible visiting windows. But construction can mean months or years of detours and lengthened travel time during peak work.
• Cost: New toll lanes can add recurring fees for every visit. For frequent visitors, that cost compounds quickly unless exemptions or discounts exist.
• Accessibility: Design choices determine whether park-and-ride lots, safe pickup/drop-off zones, and bus connections near correctional facilities are created—or removed.

Real-world examples and 2026 trends to watch

Across the U.S. in 2023–2025, several regions built toll express lanes and later added social-equity measures such as discounted passes for low-income commuters, dedicated transit lanes, or community shuttle pilots. In late 2025 federal discretionary grants and state programs increasingly prioritized projects that paired highway improvements with multimodal access. By 2026 transportation planners and corrections advocates are beginning to coordinate more often—but not consistently enough.

Experience snapshot

One region converted a freeway corridor into toll lanes and simultaneously launched a subsidized vanpool service for essential visitors to a nearby detention center. The result: fewer single-occupancy vehicles in the tolled lanes and stable visitation numbers for families who otherwise would have been priced out. This kind of integrated approach is the model to push for along I-75.

How to plan visits during construction and after tolls start

The next several years may bring construction detours, temporary lane changes, and then a new toll regime. Here are field-tested, practical steps families can take now.

Before you drive: map, budget, and time it

• Use multiple mapping tools (Google Maps, Waze, state DOT maps) to compare travel times and construction alerts. Save alternative routes in your phone.
• Estimate travel cost beyond fuel: factor tolls, parking, and wear-to-tear. Use your car’s per-mile cost calculator or online toll estimators to create a per-visit budget.
• Try a practice run at the same day/time as your planned visit to measure real-world timing during construction.

Smart timing

• Schedule visits during off-peak hours if the facility and your schedule allow. Off-peak travel reduces time in construction zones and often lowers toll prices where variable pricing applies.
• Allow extra buffer time on a first trip after major changes—arrive early so delays don’t cancel the visit.

Reduce cost per visit

• Carpool with other family members when possible. Split tolls and fuel.
• Sign up for the toll agency’s transponder prepay plan—some transponders offer lower toll rates than pay-by-plate billing.
• Ask the corrections facility about shared transport options or approved volunteer shuttles; some nonprofits operate low-cost transport for visitors.
• Use virtual visits as a reliable backup when travel becomes too expensive or the road conditions unsafe.

Safety and accessibility checklist

• Confirm ADA-accessible parking and drop-off points with the visitation office ahead of time.
• Keep a paper and digital copy of driving directions, facility phone numbers, and your transponder/account info.
• Carry cash and card—construction can disrupt nearby services that accept only cards or cash.

Advocacy: How families and allies can shape a visitation-friendly I-75

Infrastructure projects have formal public comment periods, design reviews, and local stakeholder meetings—those are your opportunities. If you care about visitation, you can influence decisions that make visiting cheaper and safer.

Step-by-step advocacy playbook

1. Document the need: Collect simple data—how often families visit, travel costs, and whether any visits were missed because of transportation issues. Short surveys (5–8 questions) distributed through faith groups, reentry organizations, or social media can build evidence quickly.
2. Map travel patterns: Use a free mapping tool to draw where visitors come from. Highlight clusters of visitors that would be affected by tolls or detours.
3. Engage early: Monitor the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) project page for I-75 public hearings and submit comments in writing ahead of meetings.
4. Bring practical requests: Ask for specific measures: reduced or waived tolls for documented frequent visitors, a scheduled park-and-ride near the facility, dedicated transit stops, improved signage, lighting and pedestrian safety at exits near prisons, or a pilot visitation shuttle funded by project mitigation money.
5. Partner with stakeholders: Build alliances with local transit agencies, reentry non-profits, county officials, and faith-based groups. Their institutional power strengthens your case.
6. Propose funding mechanisms: Recommend mitigation options such as a community benefits agreement, toll revenue set-asides for visitation programs, or applying for federal grants under infrastructure programs (IIJA discretionary grants) to fund shuttles and accessibility improvements.
7. Use media strategically: Share human stories—short, respectful profiles of visitors who would be affected—to personalize comments during hearings or in local news letters.

Email template to GDOT or your county commissioner (copy/paste and personalize)

Subject: Request for visitation-friendly mitigations in I-75 project Dear [Name], I am writing as a family member of an incarcerated person who regularly travels to [facility area]. The proposed I-75 express lanes will change travel costs and route access for many visitors. Please include mitigation measures in the project planning: a nearby park-and-ride with safe drop-off, reduced/waived tolls for verified frequent visitors, dedicated transit connections to the facility, and funding for a pilot visitation shuttle. These steps would preserve family access and improve public safety and reentry outcomes. I would like to speak at the next public meeting. Please let me know how to submit additional information. Sincerely, [Your name, city, contact info]

Advanced strategies: policy asks that work

Advocates who get results often ask for concrete, measurable policies:

• Toll exemptions or discounts: A documented visitor pass (issued by the corrections facility) that qualifies for a reduced toll rate or exemption.
• Dedicated transit windows: Coordination between GDOT and the local transit authority to run a low-cost bus aligned with visitation hours on peak visitation days.
• Community benefits agreements: Negotiated terms with contractors that fund local mobility programs or subsidize rides for visitors for a defined period.
• Monitoring and reporting: Require the project to track visitation access metrics—travel times, cost changes for visitors, and ridership on any shuttle pilots—and publish the results annually.

Public transport, microtransit, and technology: future-proofing visits

By 2026, we’re seeing more integrated mobility solutions that pair highways with transit and on-demand services. Here are ways to push for modern, equitable options:

• Express bus lanes tied to toll lanes: Advocate for one lane or shoulder access to be reserved for buses transporting visitors, which lowers per-person cost and reduces parking pressure.
• Microtransit pilots: Small, demand-responsive shuttles (app-booked) can bridge the “last mile” from a park-and-ride to the facility.
• Data integration: Ask transit agencies to add correctional facility stops to their trip-planning apps so families can combine transit + walking or rideshare intelligently. See edge personalization work for local trip planning ideas.

Practical resources and partners to contact

Start with these local and state-level contacts when forming your advocacy plan:

• Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) public involvement office — for project hearings and environmental documentation.
• Regional Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) — for transit coordination and grant applications.
• State Department of Corrections — to request documented visitor IDs or to coordinate visitation hours that align with transit schedules.
• Local reentry and visitation nonprofits — partners for surveys, pilot shuttles, and fundraising.

Common concerns—and how to address them

Advocates often run into a few predictable roadblocks. Here are quick rebuttals and strategies:

• "Tolls fund the road—why should visitors be exempt?"—Because family visits reduce recidivism and produce public safety benefits. Propose a modest visitor discount or a capped number of exempt trips per year; the cost to toll revenue is small compared with social benefits.
• "Transit isn’t used for prison visits."—Usage is low because transit often doesn’t run on visitation schedules and stops aren’t near facilities. A pilot shuttle or improved timing can unlock demand quickly.
• "Construction is temporary."—True, but temporary closures and detours can suppress visitation for months. Ask for construction-stage mitigation: clear signage, temporary parking, and community outreach to explain detours.

Measuring success: what to track

If you win commitments from GDOT or local leaders, track results in these areas:

• Average travel time to the facility before, during, and after construction.
• Average out-of-pocket cost per visit (including tolls, fuel, parking).
• Number of visitors using transit/shuttle options.
• Number of missed visits attributed to transportation barriers (surveys can capture this).

Looking ahead: predictions for I-75 and visitation in 2026–2028

Based on recent trends through early 2026, here’s what to expect:

• More projects will combine toll lanes with mobility mitigation funding—but the quality of mitigations will vary by region and political pressure.
• Expect pilot transit or shuttle programs where advocates push early and present data showing need.
• Virtual visitation will remain essential. Facilities and families that invest in reliable video visitation can buffer short-term access challenges—but it’s not a substitute for in-person contact.

Final action checklist—what you can do this week

1. Subscribe to the GDOT I-75 project updates and mark the next public hearing on your calendar.
2. Run a quick five-question survey among visitors you know: origin zip code, travel cost, visit frequency, whether tolls would prevent visits, willingness to use a shuttle.
3. Reach out to one local nonprofit and ask to partner on a comment letter or public testimony.
4. Prepare the email template above and send it to your county commissioner and the GDOT project contact.

Closing—why visitation access matters beyond convenience

Transportation isn’t just about moving cars. It shapes relationships, economic opportunity, and public safety. When states plan major projects like the I-75 expansion, they have an opportunity—and a responsibility—to design mobility that keeps families connected. With clear data, organized advocacy, and practical solutions, communities can ensure the project reduces congestion without making visits prohibitively expensive or difficult.

Call to action

If you visit someone in a facility along I-75, take two small steps today: sign up for project updates from GDOT and send one short email (use the template above) asking for visitation mitigations. If you’re not sure where to start, contact a local reentry group or our team at prisoner.pro for help drafting comments and organizing a community petition. Together, we can make sure Georgia’s infrastructure investments support family ties—not tear them apart.

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