ATLANTA — A $23-million investment in sidewalks and bike paths will make life safer in Westside Atlanta, where pedestrians often have to walk in the street, according to the community.
The Upper Westside Community Improvement District helped secure federal funding for the Westside Thrive project, an effort to provide safe walking and biking between Westside Reservoir Park and Georgia Tech.
Andrew Haney lives off of West Marietta Street. Walking in the area often means navigating narrow ruts masquerading as sidewalks. In some places, he and others are forced to walk on asphalt, where they mix with cars and big trucks.
“They’re huge,” said Haney. “The lanes aren’t quite big enough for them so if you have to walk in the street you really have to be careful. It’s dangerous.”
$16 million from the federal government, along with $7 million from the city of Atlanta, will improve the sidewalks, bike lanes, pedestrian-scale lighting, and bus stops on portions of West Marietta Street, Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard, and 10th Street.
“It’s a series of five different corridors that allow everyone to be able to move around in this area in a way they haven’t been in the past,” said Elizabeth Hollister of the Upper Westside CID.
U.S. Senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, along with Congresswoman Nikema Williams, helped secure the federal funding.
The result will give families the option of leaving their cars at home while traveling around this area.
“The connection to Donald Lee Hollowell, Howell Mill, Northside Drive, all these places you can’t safely walk right now,” said Hollister.
The project will take several years to design. Construction is expected to begin in 2027.