DEKALB AVE PILOT

LOCATION: Atlanta, GA

STATUS:      Report issued Spring 2019

AWARDS:    2019 UDC Community Design Award

Working together with our partner, Atlanta Bicycle Coalition, we brainstormed, designed, and pitched a plan to Renew Atlanta for a tactical pilot project along portions of a busy Atlanta commuter corridor that is plagued by frequent vehicle accidents and unsafe conditions for cyclists and pedestrians. Frustrated by the lack of infrastructure for alternate modes of transportation in Atlanta and by news of the diversion of taxpayer funding earmarked for a Dekalb Ave Complete Street, we outlined a “lighter, faster, cheaper” approach that could simultaneously improve safety and usability for all of Dekalb Ave’s users. Pilot projects are a way to test and refine scenarios before committing significant time and funding to one solution. The project garnered local support and was awarded a 2019 Community Design Award from the Atlanta Urban Design Commission; however, it has not been adopted and implemented by the City. As advocates for broader mobility, equity, and safer streets for all, our work is far from done on this corridor and the many other similar streets around Atlanta.