Sidewalk Task Force Meeting; Pedestrian Safety Workshop Planned

Editor's Note: The following is courtesy of PEDS. Based in Midtown at 1389 Peachtree Street, PEDS is a results-oriented, advocacy organization dedicated to making metro Atlanta safe and accessible for all pedestrians.

 Atlanta City Council members Natalyn Archibong and Carla Smith have created a task force that will recommend policy and funding changes that would enable the City to address the estimated $204 million backlog of broken sidewalks and missing curb ramps.

PEDS President Sally Flocks will be participating in the first task force meeting, which is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 26 from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. in Committee Room 1 at City Hall. The meeting is open to the public.

At a July forum, participating council members recognized the need to repair broken sidewalks. Following advice from city attorneys, however, they expressed caution about supporting policy changes. They also looked to funds from the proposed regional transportation tax to help fund sidewalk maintenance.

Now that the TSPLOST was rejected by voters in July, PEDS will encourage City Council members to move forward on introducing a bond referendum providing funds dedicated solely to addressing maintenance needs

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Do you know of pedestrian-friendly projects, programs or people you'd like PEDS to recognize? If so, please submit your nomination by Friday, Sept 21. Nomination forms are available online.

Awardees will be recognized Nov. 13  at PEDS' 13th annual Golden Shoe Awards Celebration. The event will be held at 1075 Peachtree Street from 6 - 8 p.m.

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Do your transportation engineers and planners know how to design streets that pedestrians can cross? Are they comfortable installing midblock crosswalks? If not, please encourage them to register for the Sept. 24 Designing Streets for Pedestrian Safety workshop.

Topics include street connectivity, access management, road diets, complete streets, intersection design, access to transit, and the nuts and bolts of creating safe crossings. Instructor Michael Ronkin is an internationally recognized expert on pedestrian facilities design and has presented training sessions in over 60 cities.

The workshop will take place at First Presbyterian Church, located at 1328 Peachtree Street in Midtown.