The design of Spaghetti Junction was intended to remove choke points and reduce congestion in the I-85 and I-285 interchange, which had been a cloverleaf.

[2] The actual origin of the name, "Spaghetti Junction" in Atlanta is attributed to traffic reporter Dave Straub.

In 1986, as construction was about midway completed on the massive 11-mile (18 km) ramp system, Straub was flying over it in a helicopter reporting a traffic jam and commented that it was beginning to look like an "overturned bowl of Spaghetti".

While it is officially named "The Tom Moreland Interchange" in honor of its designer, that reference is rarely used and "Spaghetti Junction" is a major landmark in the city of Atlanta and beyond.

[8] The interchange's colloquial name of "Spaghetti Junction" is mentioned in an eponymous song by the Atlanta-based hip hop group Outkast in their 2000 album Stankonia and in the film Baby Driver, which is set in Atlanta.

The album features many rising artists that call Atlanta their home, including Migos, Lil Yachty, and Young Thug.