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Greetings!
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It's a wonderful time of year - full of activity, reflection, and promise
for the New Year. We, at PEDS are grateful to you - for your financial
support, your confidence in our work, and for championing pedestrian safety and access in neighborhoods throughout metro Atlanta.
 Thanks to PEDS' impact, Santa will deliver presents to metro Atlanta children on foot. He's been training for
this all year. Notice how much healthier
he looks?
The Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety
recently renewed its financial support for PEDS. The GOHS grant is available to us on a
reimbursement basis only, which means two or three months usually pass before we are paid for work we complete.
This makes gifts from people like you especially
important. The power of
your gift is multiplied by thousands when combined with the donations
of others and the federal funding your contributions enable us to use
to make Atlanta walkable. If you haven't already done so, please join PEDS, renew your membership, or make a special year-end contribution.
Best wishes for the
holiday season.
Sincerely, 
President & CEO |
MARTA Helps Local Governments Fund Pedestrian Access to Transit
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PEDS
commends MARTA, the Atlanta Regional Commission, and city and county
governments for a creative, one-time funding solution that will greatly improve
pedestrian access to transit. By allocating $25 million in federal
stimulus funding to MARTA operations earlier this year, the Atlanta Regional
Commission enabled MARTA to avoid drastic service cuts. In return, MARTA
provided $25 million in capital funding for transit-related projects in Fulton
and Dekalb counties.
 The City of Atlanta
plans to use $7.6 million of its MARTA offset funds for sidewalk repairs and curb
ramp improvements on transit routes. A recent audit of Atlanta's parks,
buildings, and sidewalks by the the U.S. Justice Department, together with the settlement
agreement that followed, prompted Public Works to
- identify all streets and sidewalks that have
been constructed or altered since January 26, 1992
- agree to provide curb ramps at all
intersections on these streets that have barriers to entry from a
sidewalk.
The
funding MARTA provided helps ensure that fulfilling this agreement will not
create financial burdens for the City or its taxpayers.
Jurisdictions in DeKalb and Fulton counties allocated most of their MARTA Offset Funds to sidewalk and intersection
safety projects. Bravo!
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Federal Agency Seeks Input on Funding Access to Transit
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 The funding swap between the Atlanta Regional Commission and MARTA was a one-time deal, so identifying other funding sources for sidewalks and safe crossings is essential.
Here's a great opportunity for you to help.The Federal Transit Administration is seeking comments on a proposal to increase the boundaries within which FTA could fund pedestrian and bike projects.
The proposed change makes pedestrian projects within one half mile and bicycle projects within three miles of public transportation facilities eligible for FTA funding. Currently, funding is available to
pedestrian projects only if they're within one quarter mile of public
transportation facilities. This new policy would double the area around transit in which pedestrian projects could be funded by FTA. You can read the full proposal here (PDF).
Please express your support for this proposal. Speak up today for better access to transit for people on foot. Deadline: January 12, 2010.
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Governor's Office of Highway Safety Awards Grant to PEDS
|  Led by Director Bob Dallas,the Georgia Governor's Office of
Highway Safety understands the importance of sharing the road, the relationship between land use and transportation, and the impact of street design on safety. GOHS also knows that one pedestrians account for one out of eight traffic fatalities in metro Atlanta.
Recognizing PEDS as a valuable partner in its efforts to increase safety, GOHS recently renewed its support by awarding us a $69,100 grant. We'll use these funds to
- Take a seat at the transportation planning table by
participating in numerous public meetings and serving on local, regional,
and state task forces and advisory committees
- Generate media attention to the difficulty of accessing
transit on high speed, multi-lane roads that lack safe crossings
- Conduct site visits and walking tours that increase
awareness of the need to repair broken sidewalks and create safer crossings
- Participate in radio talk shows, where we'll discuss
drivers' responsibilities to pedestrians
- Work with police officers and the media to facilitate high
visibility crosswalk sting operations.
PEDS thanks the Georgia Governor's
Office of Highway Safety for partnering with us to promote safe,
accessible streets for pedestrians.
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