Forsyth County opens all four lanes on SR 369 Exit 18 overpass ahead of schedule

Forsyth County’s Capital Projects director, John Jefferson, said crews are opening all four lanes across the SR 369 overpass at Exit 18 this week after a year of repairs, with final punch-list work to follow.

Jefferson, speaking on the county’s On the Move program, said, "they are they are working on opening up, all 4 lanes," noting that the two westbound lanes were already open while the second eastbound lane and an additional westbound merging lane were scheduled to open later that afternoon. He said permanent striping may wait until after Thanksgiving, with reflective pavement markers, final signage, grassing and concrete repairs to be completed over the next couple of weeks.

The repairs followed a discovery that piles supporting span 1 of the bridge were driven "out of normal tolerance," which led to cracking in the pile cap. Jefferson said engineers and the contractor evaluated options and decided to remove and rebuild that section. "The contractor that built that originally, Baldwin, stepped up and is funding the replacement," Jefferson said.

Traffic had been maintained during the repair work with one lane in each direction on the adjacent stage of the bridge, Jefferson said, and the reopening is intended to restore full traffic capacity for people traveling toward Canton and north Forsyth. Jefferson described the four-lane stretch as running from the signal in front of Branch Bridal Church (the off-ramp from 400 North) to the signal at the Chevron station and its ramps.

Jefferson listed firms involved in the project: CEI consultant Atlas; BCC Heath and Lineback; NOVA (materials testing); Vertical Earth (roadway contractor); E. R. Snell (bridge replacement); and Baldwin Paving (paving and the original contractor), along with multiple subcontractors for signal work and striping. He said the project opened about "a month and a week" ahead of the original schedule, which had targeted the end of 2025 for full opening.

The county’s host also noted there has been "a lot of misinformation" circulating about the project and directed listeners to the county’s project page, forsythco.com/exit-eighteen, for documents and video updates. Jefferson said the county will monitor signal alignment and make any adjustments needed after all lanes are in service.

The immediate next steps are finishing permanent striping, installing reflective markers, completing signage and completing landscaping and concrete repairs. No formal vote or legislative action was recorded; the update was a project status announcement by county staff.