On Monday, September 12, a 70 year old man was struck by the driver of a car and killed while attempting to cross Boulevard NE near Wabash Avenue. On October 20, 2022, we met with District 2 Councilmember Amir Farokhi and Transportation Engineering Director Mark Tai from the Atlanta Department of Transportation (ATLDOT) for a pedestrian fatality site.  Our purpose was to better understand this location and determine what safety interventions may prevent future fatalities. Read more for the safety recommendations and actions taken by ATLDOT as a result.

All fatal crashes are dual tragedies, altering the lives of the victim’s loved ones, as well as the driver and passengers forever. We receive daily reports of fatal crashes, and when a person is killed while walking, biking, using a wheelchair, scooting, or accessing transit, we share the news with the local Atlanta City Councilmember. We do this to support elected officials who want to advocate for safety improvements. 

The location of this deadly crash features multifamily housing, MARTA bus service, a convenience store, two parks, and several medical practices including a pediatric office and a disability rehabilitation center. 

There are two major programmed infrastructure projects on this corridor, but both have been long-delayed: 

• Boulevard Pedestrian Improvements
• Monroe Dr / Boulevard Complete Street  

Until the Complete Street project advances, here are the safety improvements the group identified for this location: 

• Add Leading Pedestrian Intervals (allows pedestrians start crossing a few seconds before motor vehicles are given a green light) [status: in progress] 
• Make the pedestrian signal phase longer, due to the many older adults, children, and people using wheelchairs and walkers who cross Boulevard at this intersection [status: in progress] 
• Repaint crosswalks to be more visible and consider other ways to use the existing painted median to make pedestrian crossings safer and more visible [status: work order submitted and escalated] 
• Repaint the the curbside lane truck loading zone next to the convenience store to narrow the outside lane and reduce speeding
• Add center line hardening to reduce turning speeds of cars and decrease conflicts between pedestrians crossing as drivers are turning [status: crew to install closely spaced pairs of Raised Pavement Markers] 
• Retime the corridor’s traffic signals to a safer speed of 25 mph, so that any crashes are less harmful