It’s no secret that Atlantans want more connected options for getting around safely. So, when the City of Atlanta proposed a 12% cut to the Atlanta Department of Transportation’s FY2024 operating budget, that raised concerns and eyebrows across the board. 

There are certainly times where it takes hard work to ensure Atlanta City Council members are aware of the concerns behind issues, but in this case, Councilmembers shared many of our concerns from the start. 

During the May 10th Transportation Committee Meeting and the May 18th City Council FY24 Budget Briefings, Councilmembers asked many of the same questions we’ve been asking: 

• If ATLDOT has more than enough funding, why are so many projects with construction funding still awaiting any signs of progress? 
• Why aren’t more project manager positions funded into this budget to make faster progress on construction of complete streets? 
• Why is the City of Atlanta so far behind on basic street maintenance like repaving and sidewalk repairs? 
• Why is there a 18 month - 2 year backlog for traffic calming requests? Why have we waited three years for the Vision Zero action plan to get started? 
• Why did the ATLDOT report 80 unfunded vacancies at the May 10th Transportation Committee meeting yet only ask to hire 6 new staffers in the next year? 
• When will the City have a street sweeper that can fit into protected bike lanes? When will we hire a new bridge inspector? 
• Why does it take so long to install essential pedestrian crossings? 
• How much will the agreement to turn street lights over to Georgia Power end up costing the City? 
• Why was spending in FY2022 significantly higher than the budget? 
• How does cutting the ATLDOT budget reflect Mayor Dickens’ commitment “...all budgeted, resourced projects will be started and completed by strengthening and fully resourcing the ATLDOT that I created – now in its second year of operation.”

From today until the FY2024 budget is adopted, Atlantans have the opportunity to advocate for what we value and what our city truly needs: an adequately staffed and funded Department of Transportation that meet the community’s need for safe and accessible transportation. 

Join us in calling for an increased ATLDOT budget of $75 Million for a safer Atlanta.

Resources

• #Atlanta City Council Transportation Committee Meeting: May 10, 2023 #atlpol #Atlanta City Council FY24 Budget Briefings (Transportation ATLDOT): May 18, 2023 #atlpol
• ATLDOT May 10 Transportation Committee quarterly update slides 
• ATLDOT May 18 FY24 Proposed Budget - briefing slides