ATLANTA TRANSIT (Marta, Beltline, Peachtree Streetcar, LovJoy Commuter, etc...)

[kardon]

Originally Posted by Harry Cane

There's a blurb in Maria Saporta's column today quoting Tom Bell predicting that streetcars could be rolling down Peachtree in as little as 18 months and that a tourist loop was "on the horizon".

That would be awesome!

[Andrea]

Originally Posted by RobMidtowner

US 78 is another example of a highway using this and it is one of the most dangerous highways in Atlanta for that reason. I'm not sure why they're so dangerous, but accident history doesn't lie. There was a TV report about it a while back, can't remember which station.

They're often called "suicide lanes." There used to be a bunch of them around town -- Northside Drive, DeKalb Ave., Lee Street, and many other places. The problem is that people (a) don't notice the signals, and (b) they often use them as a way of bolting around other traffic, even if they are aware they're going the wrong way. I'd be willing to bet that anybody who's lived around Atlanta for a long time has had at least one terrifying moment with these lanes.

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by Newnan_Eric

My questions: What is happening with the former Gold Club property? Is anything planned for that spot?

Is there anything proposed on the West side of Piedmont North of the current office towers (on the site of the former Shoneys/Chinese Restaurant)?

Are there plans to redevelop the crummy apartments off of Morosgo?

The above spots seem to be the next logical places to grow this development and create critical mass in the area. Plus they are eyesores next to the new gleaming developments.

Eric - From what I remember, someone close to or perhaps Kim King & Assoc. themselves purchased the Gold Club lot. There is a proposal for a high-rise condo there (they beat out Walgreens, who also wanted it). There was a rendering in the paper about a year ago.

The crummy apartments off Morosgo's days are numbered - they're on the way out. The announcement for the first Skyline @ Lindbergh tower is actually on the corner of Morosgo right behind the new Best Buy. The whole area is on the verge of exploding finally.

[galaca]

Did anyone read in the ABC about the toll "road tunnel" proposed to run from GA 400 to I-675? It would cost $5 billion dollars and be a type of public-private project. Seems to me that if something this ambitious could be accomplished the Beltline should be a piece of cake!

[atlantaguy]

^Along with a pretty damn good commuter rail network.

I read the article, and could not believe that so many higher-ups at the DOT now seem to be signing on to this crap.

[Tombstoner]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

^Along with a pretty damn good commuter rail network.

I read the article, and could not believe that so many higher-ups at the DOT now seem to be signing on to this crap.

Why can't you believe this? Because they've been doing such a great job up until now? I'd be disappointed if they didn't salivate over something as disruptive and sprawl-inducing as this.

[Andrea]

Originally Posted by Tombstoner

Why can't you believe this? Because they've been doing such a great job up until now? I'd be disappointed if they didn't salivate over something as disruptive and sprawl-inducing as this.

Plus they would get to use bulldozers, pour concrete, dig big holes, etc.

[sabino86]

Originally Posted by Andrea

Plus they would get to use bulldozers, pour concrete, dig big holes, etc.

DOT's response:

[SteveD]

Well, while absolutely NOT endorsing the massive cost or merits of the project, or its propensity to create further sprawl, and in-town neighborhood disruptions ( ), I, for one, as a civil engineer, would be absolutely fascinated by the planning, design, logistics, engineering, and execution of it ( )!!

[Andrea]

sabino,

[john3eblover]

Originally Posted by SteveD

Well, while absolutely NOT endorsing the massive cost or merits of the project, or its propensity to create further sprawl, and in-town neighborhood disruptions ( ), I, for one, as a civil engineer, would be absolutely fascinated by the planning, design, logistics, engineering, and execution of it ( )!!

you know they would have some AWESOME specials about it on the History Channel

[Tombstoner]

Originally Posted by SteveD

Well, while absolutely NOT endorsing the massive cost or merits of the project, or its propensity to create further sprawl, and in-town neighborhood disruptions ( ), I, for one, as a civil engineer, would be absolutely fascinated by the planning, design, logistics, engineering, and execution of it ( )!!

SteveD, couldn't we convince your "inner engineer" to be satisfied with a thought experiment or some fancy wind-tunnel modeling involving balsa wood and plexiglas?

[SteveD]

Originally Posted by Tombstoner

SteveD, couldn't we convince your "inner engineer" to be satisfied with a thought experiment or some fancy wind-tunnel modeling involving balsa wood and plexiglas?

I'm not sure, Tombstoner...I'll have to try to find that inner engineer, consult with him, and see if that would be an acceptable alternative! I'm thinking not! Notwithstanding the outcome of that consultation; however, wind-tunnel modeling rocks! I think a tunnel from GA 400 to I-675 would like go directly beneath my Ormewood Park home!

[Andrea]

Instead of some ridiculous $5 billion tunnel -- which would probably wind up costing several times that in reality and be totally outmoded by the time it is completed -- why not spend a little money dismantling the 60 year old dinosaur we call the downtown connector and turning it into a series of world class boulevards, improving intersections and traffic connectivity, upgrading the surface streets and adding several light rail lines?

[SAV]

Originally Posted by Andrea

Instead of some ridiculous $5 billion tunnel -- which would probably wind up costing several times that in reality and be totally outmoded by the time it is completed -- why not spend a little money dismantling the 60 year old dinosaur we call the downtown connector and turning it into a series of world class boulevards, improving intersections and traffic connectivity, upgrading the surface streets and adding several light rail lines?

I don't know about all that
But that money should go somewhere else
perhaps some kind of rail or regional transit would be nice

[stitchuno]

Originally Posted by Andrea

Instead of some ridiculous $5 billion tunnel -- which would probably wind up costing several times that in reality and be totally outmoded by the time it is completed -- why not spend a little money dismantling the 60 year old dinosaur we call the downtown connector and turning it into a series of world class boulevards, improving intersections and traffic connectivity, upgrading the surface streets and adding several light rail lines?

the more and more i think about modifying the downtown connector, the more and more it makes sense to me. anytime i am driving on the connector, all i can think about is that the vast majority of these cars are simply passing just passing through on the way to some other location either north or south of downtown/midtown. if this traffic was steered away from the area and a well intergrated boulevard was installed in its place, the region would benefit greatly.

having witnessed how little the piedmont road sewer project has influenced traffic in the area, i would argue that removing the connector would be similar to this. i don't you how many of you have witnessed this, but with the closing of lanes and the no left turn rules on piedmont, traffic is actually flowing better than it normally does on busy afternoons/evenings. i assume people are just avoiding this stretch of road all together and either using transit or using different roads to get to their destinations. cutting down of the number of lanes and creating a large spacious boulevard would be just like this.

i know it probably will never happen, but it would make perfect sense to me. much more sense than merging two major highways in the core of a city.

[Tombstoner]

Originally Posted by stitchuno

the more and more i think about modifying the downtown connector, the more and more it makes sense to me. anytime i am driving on the connector, all i can think about is that the vast majority of these cars are simply passing just passing through on the way to some other location either north or south of downtown/midtown. if this traffic was steered away from the area and a well intergrated boulevard was installed in its place, the region would benefit greatly.

having witnessed how little the piedmont road sewer project has influenced traffic in the area, i would argue that removing the connector would be similar to this. i don't you how many of you have witnessed this, but with the closing of lanes and the no left turn rules on piedmont, traffic is actually flowing better than it normally does on busy afternoons/evenings. i assume people are just avoiding this stretch of road all together and either using transit or using different roads to get to their destinations. cutting down of the number of lanes and creating a large spacious boulevard would be just like this.

i know it probably will never happen, but it would make perfect sense to me. much more sense than merging two major highways in the core of a city.

As perverse as it sounds, I think the Connector is really a Atlanta landmark--a major thoroughfare cutting right through the heart of the city. I think it needs to be beautified and we should find ways to mitigate it's many downsides, but the basic idea of a mammoth stream of humanity flowing through downtown is kinda cool. As many have mentioned before, creating wiiiiiide bridges over it in parts would do a lot to make it an asset both in terms of creating public space and unifying the city.

[Andrea]

Originally Posted by Tombstoner

...but the basic idea of a mammoth stream of humanity flowing through downtown is kinda cool. ...

It might be different if they were actually coming to downtown, but unfortunately most of them are simply on their way from one suburb to another. Since that's the primary purpose the highway serves, it makes little sense to run it smack dab through the middle of the city.

When the highway was planned back in the 1940s, people thought Atlanta would grow around a central downtown employment center, ringed by suburban commuters who would drive into the city each day. However, that's obviously not what happened. The connector is the vestige of a half century old plan that, for a variety of reasons, really never came to fruition. It needs to be removed so that the city of Atlanta can heal the wounds from its difficult decades, and begin to develop a true urban character.

Suburbanites zooming from one suburb to another may enjoy 20-lane megahighways, but those highways ought to be in suburbia where their burden falls on the communities who use them.

[sabino86]

Originally Posted by Andrea

When the highway was planned back in the 1940s, people thought Atlanta would grow around a central downtown employment center, ringed by suburban commuters who would drive into the city each day. However, that's obviously not what happened. The connector is the vestige of a half century old plan that, for a variety of reasons, really never came to fruition. It needs to be removed so that the city of Atlanta can heal the wounds from its difficult decades, and begin to develop a true urban character.

...and GDOT still thought this in the 1980s with "Freeing the Freeways :

1964:



2004:

[MarketsWork]

Originally Posted by Andrea

The connector is the vestige of a half century old plan that, for a variety of reasons, really never came to fruition. It needs to be removed so that the city of Atlanta can heal the wounds from its difficult decades, and begin to develop a true urban character.

Ah, that old "wounded fabric" argument again. I would argue that Atlanta has healed over those old wounds, and has transformed itself into a different city from what it was before. The Downtown Connector is an integral part of this new city, and will play a major role in the coming renaissance of Downtown and Midtown -- as the new demographic cycle returns the population gravity to the city and restores the historical model envisioned by those 1940s planners. The old Atlanta we both remember is gone, and it wouldn't return if we dug up the Connector tomorrow. Fortunately, the Connector is here to stay.