Groundbreaking for SR‐400 in Atlanta

The largest public-private partnership (P3) in U.S. history finally broke ground in April. On April 22, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) held a groundbreaking for the SR-400 Express Lanes project, which will develop barrier-separated express lanes along SR-400 north of Atlanta. The project promises to transform regional mobility in one of the most congested corridors in the United States. Yet even before construction began, it had already transformed the U.S. P3 industry.

Last month’s groundbreaking marks the start of a 5.5-year construction schedule for the SR-400 project, which will be followed by a 50-year operating concession for the winning concessionaire for the project, SR 400 Peach Partners.

“This innovative P3 approach demonstrates the value of working together with private partners and private capital to deliver landmark projects,” said Georgia DOT Commissioner Russell R. McMurry. “Achieving these milestones underscores our team’s resolve and SR 400 Peach Partners’ shared vision to improve mobility for both cars and transit, and support metro Atlanta’s future economic vitality.”

SR 400 Peach Partners is led by Meridiam, ACS Infrastructure, and Acciona Concesiones. The lead construction contractors for the project are Acciona and Dragados. Parsons is the team’s lead engineering firm, and Indra USA is the Toll System Integrator.

The consortium was selected as the preferred bidder for the project in 2024 and reached financial close on a record-setting $12.18 billion financing for the project last August. The project will develop 16 miles of barrier separated, dynamically tolled express lanes along SR-400 north of Atlanta – one of the most congested corridors in the region and the country.

The SR-400 financing broke all sorts of records. In addition to being the largest P3 in U.S. history, the project also received, at $3.89 billion, the largest loan in the history of the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) federal lending program. The project also issued, at $3.32 billion, the largest Private Activity Bond offering in that program’s history. Its $4.6 billion EPC contract is the largest in history for a U.S. highway P3, and SR 400 Peach Partners is investing some $3.36 billion in equity in the project (another industry record). It’s a big project.

“Working alongside GDOT and SRTA, we’re proud to break ground on a project that combines innovation, resiliency, and operational excellence,” said Nicolas Rubio, CEO Americas at Meridiam. “The SR 400 Express Lanes will deliver safer, faster, and more predictable travel while supporting the continued growth of the Atlanta region.”

Of all the big numbers in the SR-400 financing, the one getting the most attention is the $3.8 billion concession fee that SR 400 Peach Partners paid to GDOT. Prior to the completion of the procurement, GDOT was still forecasting that it would need to pay roughly $1 billion in public subsidies in order to develop the SR-400 project. The state ended up receiving a $3.8 billion check instead.

That result is an incredible turnaround for a state P3 program that cancelled an alternate version of the SR-400 Express Lanes project only a few years earlier. GDOT’s first attempt at an express lanes project on SR-400 was procured as an availability payment-funded concession, so the state would have retained revenue risk. In 2021, and after a lengthy procurement process, the state cancelled that project after proposals were reportedly larger than the state’s available funding. GDOT managed to recover from that failed procurement quickly, and revived the SR-400 as a revenue-risk P3 in 2022.

“This groundbreaking marks an important milestone for one of Georgia’s most critical transportation corridors,” said Steve DeWitt, CEO of ACS Infra. “In partnership with GDOT and SRTA, we are proud to deliver a project that will provide long-term mobility benefits, support economic growth, and improve the daily travel experience for the communities along SR 400 and the greater Atlanta metropolitan area.”

The project is the first express lanes P3 procured under GDOT’s Major Mobility Investment Program (MMIP), which is a much larger pipeline of transportation projects to alleviate congestion in the region. It includes two additional major express lane P3 procurements in the I-285 East and the I-285 West projects, in addition to a number of interchange projects and other capacity improvements.

The SR-400 project has also become a model that could significantly expand the project pipeline of express lane P3s in planning across the United States. Federal Highway Administrator Sean McMaster attended the project’s groundbreaking in Atlanta, and noted that the Trump Administration saw the procurement as one that other state and regional transportation agencies could replicate. “Through the Department’s ‘Freedom to Drive’ initiative,” said McMaster, “we aim to build on this success nationwide, proving that federal, state, and private resources can work hand-in-hand to build a faster, more reliable transportation system.”

GDOT is working with many advisors to deliver their express lane project pipeline. HNTB is the state’s Program Management Consultant. Jacobs is the General Engineering Consultant. Ernst & Young is the Financial Advisor. Ashurst, McGuireWoods and Nossaman are all legal advisors. AtkinsRéalis is the tolling advisor. Ames & Gough is the insurance advisor, and C&M Associates is the traffic and revenue advisor.

The Next Project

SR-400 has broken ground, but GDOT doesn’t have very much time to celebrate: proposals for the next express lanes project are right around the corner.

The I-285 East Express Lanes project will eventually develop two barrier-separated express lanes on the east side of the Atlanta perimeter from the end of the SR-400 express lanes all the way to the intersection with I-20. Final proposals for the I-285 East project are due later this year.

The structure of the I-285 East procurement differs significantly from SR-400. Instead of a single “hard bid” proposal for the entire project, the I-285 East procurement includes a hard bid for a Phase 1 project scope, which includes only the westbound express lanes on I-285 from the intersection with Henderson Road to the interconnection with the SR-400 Express Lanes now under construction. The remainder of the I-285 East Express Lanes project scope would be developed by the winning bid team under a predevelopment agreement, with optional scope extensions to be negotiated.

The third and final express lanes procurement under the MMIP is the I-285 West Express Lanes project, which will eventually build express lanes on the west side of the perimeter from the SR-400 express lanes to (eventually) the I-20 intersection west of Atlanta. That procurement is still in the offing, but will likely be structured similarly to the I-285 East Express Lanes project, with both a hard bid phase 1 and a predevelopment agreement for the remaining scope.

The latest shortlist for the I-285 East Express Lanes procurement includes three bid teams:

285 East Peach Partners, led by ACS Infrastructure, Meridiam, and Acciona. The team’s phase 1 lead contractors are Flatiron Dragados and Acciona Construction. Arcadis is the lead design firm.

East Perimeter Partners, led by Plenary, Sacyr, and Shikun & Binui. The team’s phase 1 lead contractor is a joint venture between Sacyr and Shikun & Binui. WSP is the lead design firm.

Top End Mobility Group, led by Cintra, Transurban and Star America. The team’s phase 1 lead contractor is a joint venture between Ferrovial and Webber. AECOM is the lead design firm.