A City Council member has tabled her proposal to separate “wheels and heels” on Atlanta’s Beltline amid concerns the creation of a dedicated bike lane would eliminate the possibility of future light rail along the popular path.
Mary Norwood introduced the measure at last week’s council meeting, citing the growing popularity of electric scooters, e-bikes and other motorized devices that have “increased congestion and created safety concerns.” She was joined by Council member Eshé Collins.
The resolution noted the “safety risks” posed to walkers and runners who share the path with faster-moving electric-powered vehicles.
Creating dedicated pathways for bikes and other authorized motorized devices would enhance safety and reduce collisions, Norwood said in her proposal.
It’s a move some have argued is a safe and practical solution to the ever-increasing congestion on the Beltline’s Eastside Trail.
“It’s really dangerous out there,” said Hans Klein, a professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Public Policy and the president of Better Atlanta Transit’s board of directors.
Klein said it’s only a matter of time before someone gets seriously injured or killed, calling it a “completely foreseeable tragedy.”
“They really have a public responsibility to address the incredible dangers on the Beltline, and the best way to do that is to correct what has emerged, in retrospect, as a design flaw,” he said.
Others, however, are concerned creating a separate path would use up any remaining space to add light rail.
The Beltline was always envisioned as a 22-mile loop of trails and light rail transit. But in recent years, those plans have been thrust into limbo. Even before Norwood’s resolution, traffic volume on the crowded Eastside Trail, the most developed portion so far, has led to calls from groups like Better Atlanta to add another track to separate “wheels and heels.”
Credit: bgray@ajc.com
Credit: bgray@ajc.com
The status of light rail is unclear. Mayor Andre Dickens announced last year that he wanted to start construction on the Southside Trail, instead of the Eastside, where plans were nearing shovel-ready status. Then, records show a group of city, Beltline and MARTA officials formed to oversee the project voted behind closed doors to stop the Eastside work.
Officials from the three groups have said the vote to “stop” work was actually a pause. But there’s been no development of either the Eastside or Southside plans in the year since.
A group backing light rail, Beltline Rail Now, said Norwood’s resolution would make the conversation about which segment to start with moot, and instead kill the plans entirely.
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
“Beltline congestion would be best alleviated by building all 22 miles of Beltline rail,” the group said in a statement. “Norwood’s proposal would permanently foreclose on the mayor’s and the city’s plans for Beltline rail, and would add yet more pavement to Atlanta’s landscape.”
Norwood did not return calls or texts seeking comment. In a statement, the mayor’s office said his administration “is opposed to any legislation that would eliminate our ability to put rail on the Beltline.”
Police union wants retirement eligibility 5 years sooner
Citing pressure, stress and the demands of the job, Atlanta’s police union is again urging the city to allow its officers to retire after 25 years on the force.
Lt. Courtney Murphy, the union president, pitched the idea to City Council members during last week’s budget briefing. It’s a proposal the union has brought to the council for several years now, she said.
Atlanta police officers are currently eligible to retire and receive a full pension after three decades on the job, similar to other city positions, Murphy said.
But she argued police have more demanding professions, and said many get burned out well ahead of that 30-year mark.
“We spend more time with the citizens of Atlanta than we do with our own family,” Murphy said.
The department is requiring each officer to work 12-hour shifts during the upcoming World Cup, police Chief Darin Schierbaum said last month. In an effort to ensure the city has enough officers, APD has also suspended vacations for everyone except those who just had a baby, are on FMLA or are serving in the military, he said.
Murphy said working in a city that constantly hosts major events can take its toll.
“The men and women that make this possible are tired,” she told the council. “They’re tired, and they’re getting burned out, and they’re going to other jurisdictions that don’t have such a heavy workload.”
She called it a taxing profession, both physically and emotionally, and said other people aren’t expected to handle as much over the course of their careers.
Council member Antonio Lewis raised concerns that other front-line workers such as firefighters or sanitation workers would find it unfair for the city to carve out a special exemption for its police officer pensions.
“If we do it for one, I’d like to do it for all,” Lewis said. “ … My goal would be that everybody gets the same thing.”
— Transportation reporter Sara Gregory contributed to this article.
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