RSS FeedLet the City of Atlanta know how to invest the local share of the proposed transportation sales tax
February 29, 2012 at 10:48am by Sally Flocks · 3 commentsOn July 31, voters within the ten-county Atlanta region will vote whether to fund projects through a regional transportation sales tax. The estimated $7.2 billion raised through this tax over ten years will be split into two separate pots of money. Some $6.1 billion (85% of the total) will be used for regional projects selected last October by the Regional Transportation Roundtable. The remaining 15% will be allocated directly to counties and cities.
The City of Atlanta expects to receive $9 million per year for ten years to spend on local projects. City officials are working to develop a rolling five-year list of projects to be funded by the 15% local allocation if the referendum passes in July.
To get public input on how residents want this money invested, the City is holding a series of information sessions. PEDS is encouraging the City to invest in repairing broken sidewalks, installing pedestrian activated signals and other devices that make it safe to cross the streets, and converting streets that were designed for cars only into ones that are safe for all users. We encourage you to attend one or more of these sessions to learn more about the referendum and to speak up for investing in a walkable Atlanta If you can’t attend, please submit your comments by e-mail to tiacomments@atlantaga.gov or call 404-330-6145 by March 15, 2012.
Just two sessions remain:
Thursday, March 1, 2012 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm (presentations at 6:00pm and 7:00pm)
Atrium, MARTA Headquarters, 2424 Piedmont Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30324
Accessible via MARTA Gold & Red Lines and bus routes 5, 6, 27, 30 and 39
Monday, March 5, 2012 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm (presentations at 6:00pm and 7:00pm)
Carpenter’s House, Atlanta Mission, 2353 Bolton Rd NW, Atlanta, GA 30318
Accessible via MARTA bus route 60
If you need special accommodations please call 404-330-6145 at least 24 hours before the session you plan to attend.
Monroe Drive, in between Park and 10th Street, is a 4-lane road with a speed limit of 30 mph. Although this part of Monroe is within walking distance to Grady, shops, Piedmont Park (dog park entrance), many events, and restaurants, pedestrian safety is a huge issue. During events, the speeding drivers are not monitored and can hit the curbs where pedestrians are walking on sidewalks. The sidewalks are too small for multiple pedestrians to walk at the same time and there is no place to allow passing pedestrians. Cars never stop at the crosswalks when pedestrians are in the crosswalks, and because biking is such a safety hazard, many bikers try to utilize the sidewalks as a bike path. The traffic never backs up on Monroe in between Park and 10th, but it remains 4 lanes and people treat it as if it is an interstate. Why can’t this portion of Monroe have parking on either side to slow traffic and create a barrier for pedestrians? It would benefit everyone in the virginia highland neighborhood, as it is a main pedestrian walkway to events and the park….
People designing the Atlanta BeltLine plan to make the intersection of 10th & Monroe safer as part of the trail project that will open this fall. BeltLine planners have also talked about reducing Monroe from four lanes to three, with one lane in each direction and a two-way center turn lane in the middle. The extra space would be used to widen the sidewalk between Park Drive and 10th Street. I don’t know whether a timeline has been established for this yet. I encourage you to recommend moving forward on this next time the BeltLine holds a workshop for NE Atlanta.
What happens now with Monroe Drive in between Park and 10th? Do we just have more traffic dumped on the street from the beltline with no plan to increase pedestrian safety? Thank you for your help.