Downtown Atlanta resident Jim Hackler says drivers in the city have become so reckless that a few months ago, one nearly plowed down a troop of Girl Scouts as the children tried to cross North Avenue.
“The Girl Scouts had the right of way,” Hackler said. “But drivers would not let them pass. One got very upset when I put my bike in the crosswalk so they could.”
Experts said the inadequacy of Atlanta’s biking and walking infrastructure not only creates dangers for pedestrians but also affects the overall health of the city’s residents. Doctors recommend walking, but for many Atlantans, it’s too dangerous.
Rebecca Serna, executive director of the nonprofit Propel ATL, which lobbies for safer sidewalks and bike lanes, says mental and physical health is suffering due to poor pedestrian infrastructure.
“Everyone knows someone who has been hit by a car while walking,” Serna said. “People tell us they would rather get in some steps and feel the sun on their faces, but are reluctant to take that risk.”
Propel ATL’s research found that two-thirds of Atlanta pedestrian fatalities in 2022 occurred in predominantly Black neighborhoods.
A report released in 2024 by Smart Growth America said Georgia’s 5th Congressional District — which includes Atlanta, Sandy Springs, Decatur, College Park and East Point — is the second deadliest congressional district in the United States.
Research by the U.S. Department of Transportation found that fear of being hit by a car is the main reason many Americans choose not to walk or bike.
The inability to walk places has a negative impact on mental and physical health, said Michelle Marcus, a senior research associate at the Georgia Health Policy Center at Georgia State University.
“When we compare across cities, with all else being equal, we find that better walking conditions are associated with better health and well-being across the entire community,” Marcus said. “Atlanta could set this as a goal.”
Researchers at Arizona State University were actually able to prove that being forced to drive everywhere is making Americans unhappy.
Conversely, researchers in Spain and Latin America found that walking 7,000 steps a day or more lowered the risk of depression.
Almost 98% of people who live, work and visit Midtown want the city to prioritize walkability, said Kevin Green, president and CEO of Midtown Atlanta Alliance.
Residents have also voted for measures to make this a reality. In 2022, Atlantans approved a big investment in sidewalks and bike lanes: $147 million for 68 sidewalk projects, Serna said.
“But three years later, the city hasn’t finished any of the sidewalk projects yet,” she added, pointing to figures in the city of Atlanta Department of Transit Dashboard.
The city has made some progress installing curb ramps, but many sidewalks are broken or missing, making it hard to walk safely, much less use a wheelchair or push a stroller, Serna said.
She said the inaction can be seen in nearly every Atlanta neighborhood, but is all the more alarming in the case of downtown Atlanta. That’s because in October, the Atlanta City Council approved a $120 million infrastructure bond for a massive makeover to the downtown neighborhood ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup games to be held there, the AJC reported.
On a recent walk through downtown, a reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution saw newly paved bike lanes near the site of the former Rich’s department store. Yet these same bike lanes were also riddled with potholes.
Credit: Michael Scaturro
Credit: Michael Scaturro
Hackler says he still bikes around the city despite the potholes. What worries him more are crosswalks so faded that drivers don’t know when to stop.
Yet even well-marked crosswalks don’t always deter drivers in a rush, he added.
On a recent Saturday, as he attempted to cross Ted Turner Drive at Williams Street, next to Ted’s Montana Grill, drivers whizzed by and nearly ran him over. He says it happens all the time.
“They are supposed to stop, but don’t,” he said. “Drivers in Atlanta don’t realize they are sitting in what is a murder weapon that can kill a pedestrian.”
Credit: Michael Scaturro
Credit: Michael Scaturro
ATLDOT spokesman, Michael Frierson, said the city recognizes the problem, and has installed rectangular rapid flashing beacons to alert drivers that pedestrians have the right-of-way.
The city’s “No Turn on Red” policy being implemented in Downtown, Midtown, and Castleberry Hill this year will also help pedestrians more safely navigate intersection crossings, he added.
Although Atlanta’s Beltline project has vastly improved walkability in several parts of the city, only 25% of the city’s population lives near it, according to The Conservation Fund.
Many Atlantans couldn’t walk safely if they wanted to, said Dr. Nanette Wenger, professor of medicine in the cardiology division at Emory University.
“Even affluent parts of Atlanta like Buckhead lack sidewalks,” Dr. Wenger said. “It’s very hard to walk without sidewalks. Large portions of our population don’t have access to areas where they can walk or gain exercise.”
Credit: Michael Scaturro
Credit: Michael Scaturro
Atlanta’s walkability issue was exacerbated by companies moving from downtown to Midtown over the last 30 years. Newer apartment and office buildings were built with their own parking garages to cater to suburbanites in their cars, argued Timothy Crimmins, a history professor emeritus at Georgia State University and a former director of the school’s neighborhood-studies center.
“Firms were looking for parking in the buildings so clients could park and enter right into the office,” he said. “The Five Points buildings, which were built in another area, didn’t have that.”
Despite the risks, Brad Smith of Atlanta remains determined to walk the 1.5 miles from his job at Piedmont Hospital, over the Peachtree Street North Bridge spanning I-85, to the MARTA’s Arts Center subway stop.
“Atlanta is not safe for pedestrians or for drivers,” he said. “MARTA buses just aren’t reliable. I’d rather walk to the MARTA station and at least get the exercise.”
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