Following a letter from PEDS and a phone call from state Representative Kathy Ashe in May, Georgia Department of Transportation board member Emory McClinton and Walker K. Scott, Director of Preconstruction, agreed to create a Pedestrian Task Force. Scott said the first initiative of the Task Force would be the marking and identification of crosswalks, but the full charge of the Task Force could be developed at the first meeting. PEDS hopes to expand the focus to include free right turn lanes, pedestrian refuge islands, double left and double right turn lanes, and other issues. Sidewalk Abuse Atlanta has plenty of cheap parking. It also has a surplus of motorists who are either too busy to think about others or too lazy to walk 200 feet.
Many residents seem unaware that parking in the sidewalk area of driveways blocks pedestrian access.
Please distribute them on cars you encounter in the wrong places. In constructions areas, the City of Atlanta treats pedestrians like second class citizens or worse. Usually it closes a sidewalk and builds a fence next to the street. Sometimes an additional lane of traffic is closed to provide space for a dumpster or for parking for construction workers. In contrast, Public Works uses orange cones to provide safe access when lane closings affect motor vehicles.