A $24 million price tag for a "loopy-lop" pedestrian bridge for Atlanta Falcons fans is called in to question.
In Atlanta, a proposed pedestrian bridge to connect the Vine City MARTA station to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, the new home of the Falcons football team, carries a hefty price tag. At $24 million, the bridge would be more than two blocks in length, intended to bypass a 70 foot crosswalk. The Saporta Report calls for that funding to be spent on improvements that are more needed on an everyday basis, not just gameday.
The proposed bridge would cross over Northside Drive, and including the looping ramps to elevate pedestrians over the roadway, would be 700 feet long. Plans to make Northside Drive into a complete street are already underway, but have not yet been implemented.
The Saporta Report points out that $24 million could pay for 200 traffic signals or address 10% of the city's backlog of broken sidewalks.
We now can embark on a more collaborative, inclusive, rational and efficient way in how we decide to invest in our Atlanta’s future.
"A good place to start would be to stop the pricey, loopy-loop pedestrian bridge over Northside Drive. Then we can reallocate those funds to make Northside Drive a corridor that really connects the people in our city."
Read the full story: Money to Build Pricey Pedestrian Bridge Over Northside Drive Should be Spent at Street Level
Arts, Sports, and Development in Atlanta
Galleries and clubs ponder inevitable change and gentrification in South Atlanta as developers show interest.
Atlanta Toll Lane Project Gains Support From Cobb County
The Georgia Department of Transportation is continuing work on an expansion of I-285, claiming the new express lanes could cut travel times by as much as 39 percent.
Atlanta Street Extension Project Will Benefit Transit Access
Plans to extend 15th Street in Midtown Atlanta are designed to improve access to the Arts Center MARTA station.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
Satanic place names
From streams and lakes to valleys and canyons, I mapped more than 1,000 places named after the Devil.
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO resigns after $600,000 scandal
Under Ian Choudri, the authority used taxpayer dollars to fund first class flights and trips to nightclubs.
Want to study the Missouri River? Soon, you may need unanimous approval from 10 states
Legislation would require 10 governors’ permission to study or build projects moving water outside the basin.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority