Georgia State Route 164

As of December 15, 2004, GA 164 is now a 6.8 mile highway extending from GA 51 in Homer east to GA 59 north of Commerce. The highway, extended for the second time since it was first commissioned, is located in Banks County and has a breif overlap with U.S. 441/GA 15 southeast of Homer. It should be noted that more than half of GA 164 is on the old alignment of U.S. 441 in Homer. Additionally, GA 164 passes under I-85 with no interchange.

The extension of GA 164 in 2004 is not the first time that GA 164 has been extended. The original extension occured in the early 1960's during an era when new state routes were rapidly being added to the state highway system. During that time, GA 164 suddenly took on more than twice the mileage of the original 3.2 mile cutoff from U.S. 441 to GA 59, which had been first commissioned in the 1940's.

While new routes in the northeastern part of the state were literally popping up like weeds, GA 164 was no exception. In all, the new extension of GA 164 included an eastward overlap along part of GA 59 for 3.5 miles to Bold Springs Road. The route then followed Bold Springs Road for an additional 6.6 miles to end at GA 106 seven miles south of Carnesville. This extension brought GA 164 into Franklin County.

GA 164 in 1988 prior to the turnback of the Bold Springs Road portion. Note the overlaps with GA 59 and 326 (1988 GDOT Map).

Bold Springs Road was not a logical choice for a state route, and its existance appears to have largely been political like many of the highways were in that era. Narrow and winding, the route truly goes from nowhere to nowhere. Even more so, the route also pretty much ran parallel to GA 51 to the north. In addition to the overlap on GA 59, GA 164 also had a short 0.4 mile overlap with GA 326, which was added at the same time. The result of this is that GA 326 still follows a portion of Bold Springs Road today.

The extended GA 164 route lasted over two decades before it became a casualty of the major decommissionings of the 1980's and was returned to Franklin County in 1989. The turnback retracted the route back to the original 3.2 mile section in Banks County, which remained as such for another 15 years. From this point, it seemed as if GA 164 would have ceased to exist when the Homer By-Pass opened in late 2004, but this surprisingly was not the case.

On December 15, 2004, the Homer By-Pass opened and U.S. 441 would never again pass through the tiny county seat of Banks County. When GA 765, the temporary designation of the by-pass, became U.S. 441, GA 164 took over the southern end of the old highway through Homer. The old alignment was already overlapped mostly with GA 51 beyond that and what remained was turned back to local control.

GA 164 extended along Old U.S. 441 in Homer. Note GA 51 and the gray line northeast of Homer that were both U.S. 441 prior to 2004. Old GA 164 is labeled on the right.

Through the relocation of U.S. 441, GA 164 regained some of its lost glory from the turnback of Bold Springs Road. Extended once again, this time GA 164 was extended west instead of east, following what had previously been U.S. 441 up to where GA 51 previously joined U.S. 441 in Homer. The new route more than doubled the length of the route, better establishing the importance of GA 164 as a state route as it now serves as part of an unsigned business route through Homer.

GA 164 has been a personal project, so many photos were taken along the route. Here are a few:

Georgia 164 Termini Gallery

All photos below by J.T. Legg. Included below is a special feature of before and after photos comparing the western end with when the road was U.S. 441 a few months prior.

Georgia 164 Ends Photos

Western Terminus: GA 51 in Homer

Photo 1: Eastern terminus facing north on what was U.S. 441. Photo 2: Junction assembly on eastbound GA 51. Photo 3: Directional assembly at GA 51. All photos taken December 27, 2004. Compare to all the photos below taken at the same locations on August 21, 2004.

SPECIAL: Western Terminus Prior to Change

All photos here are on the exact locations of the photos above when the route through Homer was still U.S. 441.

Eastern Terminus: GA 59 north of Commerce

Photo 1: The end signage here originally had a left arrow. Photo 2: Directional assembly on GA 59 northbound. Photo 3: First westbound reassurance shield. Photo 4: Junction assembly on GA 59 northbound. All photos taken August 21, 2004

Georgia 164 Historic Ends Photos

Historic Western Terminus: U.S. 441/GA 15 southeast of Homer

Photo 1: Original end signage on GA 164 westbound at U.S. 441. The signs here are contractor installed. They were installed when the section south of the Homer By-Pass was widened in 2001. Photo 2: Directional assembly on northbound U.S. 441. Work on the Homer By-Pass was nearing completion. Photo 3: First reassurance shield eastbound. The milemarkers will need to be fixed, but were unchanged as of December 27, 2004. Photos taken August 21, 2004.

Historic Eastern Terminus: GA 106 between Carnesville and Ila

Photo 1: Remaining GA 106 directional assembly at former eastern terminus. Photo 2: Westbound LGS reading "Homer 19". The speed limit sign was installed after the route was decommissioned. Photo 3: Extremely faded LGS approaching GA 106. Note that most of the letters on the legend have fallen off. Photos taken August 21, 2004.