e-newsletter header
 November 2009
In This Issue
Metro Atlanta Ranked 10th Worst for Pedestrians
PEDS Recognizes Pedestrian-friendly Projects, People and Places
Hazard Reporting Tool Expands its Reach
Metro Atlanta Ranked 10th Worst for Pedestrians
Dangerous by Design (PDF), a report released last week by Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Group, ranked Atlanta as the nation's 10th most dangerous large metropolitan area.

PEDS isn't surprised. In the region's
5 core counties:
  • 3 pedestrians are struck by drivers every day.
  • 60 pedestrians were killed and more than 1,000 were injured in 2008.
  • Safe crossings are few and far between on high speed, multi-lane streets.
Metro Atlanta ranks poorly because our transportation agencies don't invest enough in sidewalks and safe crossings. Pedestrians account for 9.7 percent of all traffic deaths in Georgia. Yet only 1.7 percent of Georgia's federal transportation funds are used for  pedestrian facilities.
Link to CBS News Video
PEDS partnered with the Livable Communities Coalition to release the report to local media.  Watch the CBS News Video or listen to WABE's radio broadcast of the story.

Metro Atlanta's poor ranking is a call to action. Transportation agencies must:
  1. retrofit multi-lane roads with sidewalks, safe and convenient crossings and infrastructure that discourages speeding.
  2. commit a fair share of transportation funding - at least 9.7 percent - to projects that support pedestrian safety.
  3. adopt "complete streets" policies to ensure future transportation investments safely accommodate all transportation users.
TAKE ACTION: DEMAND SAFER STREETS!
Every six years Congress sets the country's transportation priorities.This year's reauthorization of the federal transportation bill is our best chance to create a system where pedestrians and cyclists are safe and public transportation is widely available.

Make sure your representatives and senators hear your voice. Please sign Transportation for America's petition calling for bold change.
PEDS Recognizes Pedestrian-friendly Projects, People and Places
In a region where pedestrians often remain an afterthought, eight Golden Shoe Award winners are raising the bar and doing their part to address the needs of people on foot.  PEDS recently presented Golden Shoe Awards to people, projects and places that have contributed significantly this year to making metro Atlanta communities more walkable. See photos from this year's event. (TRB Imagery)

Peachtree Street PiazzaPedestrian-friendly Road Diet: Midtown Alliance for eliminating dangerous right turn lanes and converting two lanes of Peachtree Street in Midtown to parking spaces, median refuge islands and an inviting gathering place for people on foot.
 
Pedestrian-friendly Development: Selig Enterprises and Daniel Corporation, for the 1010 Building, a high-density, mixed-use development that is transforming an entire block of Peachtree Street in Midtown into a magnet for pedestrians.

Pedestrian-friendly Public Engagement: City of Atlanta and Glatting Jackson, for the Connect Atlanta Plan's public engagement process, which educated Atlantans about the contributions short blocks and a well-connected street grid make to creating truly walkable communities.
 
Pedestrian-friendly Traffic Operations: City of Suwanee, for installing Georgia's first HAWK signal, an innovative tool for creating safer street crossings at locations where traditional traffic signals are not warranted.

Pedestrian-friendly Enforcement: Georgia State University Police, for addressing risks created by people who talk on cell phones or text while driving. GSU police issued 100 "failure to show due care" citations to motorists using cell phones while violating crosswalk or other laws.
 
Pedestrian-friendly Activism: Jim Durrett, a champion for smart growth whose leadership at the Livable Communities Coalition and the Urban Land Institute created thriving regional organizations that encourage compact, pedestrian-friendly development and transportation investments linked to land use.
 
Pedestrian-friendly Journalism: Writer John Becker, whose Take to Task columns in the AJC, are bringing attention to perils for pedestrians caused by broken infrastructure and for his persistent efforts to hold government officials accountable for addressing hazards.
 
Funding Pedestrian-friendly Education: The Buckhead Coalition, for offering to pay 75 percent of the cost of speed radar signs in Buckhead neighborhoods. By providing instant feedback on driving speed, radar signs encourage motorists to slow down.

PEDS extends special thanks to board member Lisa Frank of Frank Relations for chairing this year's event and veteran television reporter Sally Sears for serving as emcee.
Hazard Reporting Tool Expands its Reach
We've added 7 new jurisdictions to our popular hazard reporting tool. In addition to the nine jurisdictions already served by the tool, pedestrians can now report hazards in Alpharetta, Dunwoody, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Stone Mountain, and unincorporated Cobb and Gwinnett counties.

When reporting pedestrian hazards, pictures are worth a thousand words. When you notice a busted sidewalk, ill-fitting water meter cover, or other problem, photograph it.  Then upload the picture with your online hazard report.

Help PEDS make metro Atlanta walkable!

If you haven't already, please join or renew your PEDS membership or make a donation.

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PEDS is a member-based advocacy group dedicated to
making metro Atlanta safe and accessible for all pedestrians.
[email protected]       404-522-3666       www.peds.org