Interstate 3

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This article contains information about a planned or expected future road. It may contain information of a speculative nature and the content may change dramatically as the road's construction and/or completion approaches and more information becomes available.

Interstate 3, the Third Infantry Division Highway, is a proposed Interstate Highway in the United States to run from Savannah, Georgia north to Knoxville, Tennessee. The roadway was proposed in the same federal highway measure that gave birth to a proposal for Interstate 14.

In 2005, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) was signed into law by President George W. Bush. The act included a designation for I-14 (specifically as the 14th Amendment Highway), and I-3 (as the 3rd Infantry Division Highway). The legislation did not provide for funding the highways, however.

The numbering of the highway does not fit within the existing interstate highway grid, but was noted to salute and honor the 3rd Infantry Division, based at Fort Stewart, Georgia.

The actual final route of Interstate 3 is unknown. But the 2005 SAFETEA-LU legislation indicated that in Georgia, I-3 would follow the existing Savannah River Parkway from Savannah to Augusta.

According to the Georgia Department of Transportation, the Savannah River Parkway, which carries the designations Georgia 555 and Georgia 565, is mostly open to traffic or under construction.

The Savannah River Parkway begins just northwest of Savannah at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Georgia Route 21. It goes northwesterly along Georgia 21, paralleling the Savannah River, to Millen, where it meets U.S. 25. From Millen, the roadway follows U.S. 25 to Interstate 520 in Augusta. A western branch of the Savannah River Parkway runs from Interstate 16 south of Statesboro north and northwestward (following U.S. 25) to meet the main parkway roadway in Millen.

The proposal faces local opposition from groups concerned about the environmental impact of the interstate highway. No date for construction of the highway has been set.

[edit] External Links

• 2005 SAFETEA-LU legislation, from the Library of Congress
• Georgia DOT - Savannah River Parkway description
• Stop I-3 (opposition group)
• Interstate Guide Proposed Interstates: I-3

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