Augusta-Richmond County, GA Sign Regulations: Freeway-Facing Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- GDOT permit trigger
- Within 660 ft of Interstate ROW
- Interchange buffer
- 500 ft, no billboards
- National Highway System route
- Needs City + GDOT approval
- Spacing between billboards
- 750 ft same side, 300 ft any direction
- Allowed zones
- B-2, LI, HI only
- Max penalty
- $1,000 fine or 60 days
Summary
Augusta-Richmond County treats any billboard within 660 feet of an Interstate right-of-way as part of the Interstate Highway System and requires a Georgia DOT permit before it can go up. Section 28-B-10 bars billboards entirely within 500 feet of an interstate interchange or rest area and requires joint city and state approval for signs on any National Highway System route.
Billboards located within six hundred and sixty (660) feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way of an Interstate Highway must be permitted by the Georgia Department of Transportation. For purposes of this Ordinance, any billboard located in this area shall be considered to be a part of the Interstate Highway System regardless of whether the sign faces the Interstate Highway or is oriented toward the Interstate Highway or toward another roadway. No billboards shall be located on roadways designated as part of the Interstate Highway System within five hundred (500) feet of an interchange, intersection grade, or safety rest area. ... G. State and local approval required. For routes designated as part of the National Highway System pursuant to Title 23 USC Section 103, approval by both the City and the Georgia Department of Transportation shall be required in order to erect or modify a billboard.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Recodification).
Full Breakdown
Section 28-B-10 of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance treats proximity to limited-access highways as its own category of billboard control, separate from the section's general zone and spacing rules. Any billboard sited within 660 feet of the nearest edge of an Interstate right-of-way is deemed part of the Interstate Highway System, whether or not the sign actually faces the interstate, and cannot go up without a permit from the Georgia Department of Transportation. A flat 500-foot buffer, measured from where the pavement starts or stops widening at an interchange, bars any billboard near an interstate exit, entrance, intersection grade, or safety rest area.
C. Section 103, a billboard needs sign-off from both the City and the Georgia Department of Transportation before it can be erected or modified. These highway-proximity rules stack on top of Section 28-B-10's ordinary controls: billboards may only sit in B-2, LI, or HI zones, at least 750 feet apart along the same roadway frontage and 300 feet from any other billboard in any direction, and are separately banned along more than a dozen named corridors, including Washington Road, Gordon Highway, and Bobby Jones Expressway, for 500 to 1,000 feet from their rights-of-way.
Violations & Fines
Erecting or modifying a billboard on a highway-controlled corridor without the required Georgia DOT and, where applicable, City sign-off is enforced the same way as any other sign violation under Section 28-B-13: a written notice to abate, then a misdemeanor citation carrying up to a $1,000 fine, up to 60 days in jail, or both, with each day of noncompliance a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put a billboard right next to I-20 or the Bobby Jones Expressway?
What is the National Highway System rule about?
How far apart do billboards have to be from each other?
Are billboards banned on any local streets?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Augusta-Richmond County
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