Study: Beltline and AMTRAK can co-exist…
January 28, 2009 at 8:40 pm by Thomas Wheatley in News…but it would be problematic for them to do so on the Beltline property in Northeast Atlanta that’s become a bone of contention for the city, the Georgia Department of Transportation and AMTRAK.
In 2005, Beltline visionary Ryan Gravel and Friends of the Beltline Inc. issued a study that examined how the 22-mile loop of parks, trails and transit may be affected by the various rail lines circling Atlanta. (Download the study PDF here.)
In regards to the “Decatur Belt,” the 3.5-mile segment that runs from DeKalb Avenue to Ansley Mall, the study says:
use of this line for the commuter rail network is problematic for the following reasons:
• The original alignment of the Decatur Street Belt with the main line into downtown Atlanta was broken by the reconfiguration of Hulsey Yard and the construction of the elevated East MARTA line and King Memorial Station.
• Use of the Decatur Street Belt puts Amtrak trains through residential areas and Piedmont Park, crossing surface streets at Monroe Drive, Irwin Street and DeKalb Avenue.
• The Decatur Street Belt is too narrow south of Freedom Parkway for the Belt Line and Amtrak to share right-of-way with separate tracks.
• Shared use of the tracks themselves in this corridor would be difficult due to topographic and physical constraints.
• Any shared arrangement would make the Belt Line much less desirable by eliminating greenspace and permeability and by increasing safety concerns, particularly for pedestrians and cyclists.
The group proposed several recommendations, including tinkering with the Brookwood station where AMTRAK currently stops. One of the biggest challenges the Beltline will face is actually connecting the rail segments that will create its spine and shape.
If you’re a transit lover and want to know more about the current dispute, as well as the project’s other connectivity challenges, this study is well worth a read.
January 28th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
I’m convinced State Govt is a jobs program for those who otherwise couldn’t find employment. There would be a full scale revolt if the legislature was in session year round. Instead, we get an 8 month break between their idiotic ideas.
GDOT positions, and actions, on the beltline are just the latest example. It just serves as a reminder of the backward state we live in. No wonder our education system is ranked in the bottom five nationally. Most of these clowns in charge couldn’t run a Dairy Queen.
January 29th, 2009 at 1:43 am
These various “beltway” concepts conflict with the original plan for Atlanta. Atlanta is not a grid city, it is a city built on the original railroad with a single hub. That was how MARTA was built. Stay with this and build out from the hub and things will work.
January 29th, 2009 at 1:54 am
is ryan gravel they guy who created the beltline idea for his thesis at GT?
if so, why isn’t he in charge of the project?
no one currently running things seems to know what they r doing.
January 29th, 2009 at 8:31 am
The people running the beltline are fine. It’s the idiots at the State that are to blame. They’ve been invlolved in the beltline discussions for years and offered no valuable input. Now that chickenhead is almost out of office he decides to dabble in transportation issues. They need to support the City’s (all cities) efforts and stop playing mean big brother.