Wednesday, February 21, 2001

All the Ga. Highway 54 West corridor plans are beginning to implode. Ga. Department of Transportation engineer Marion Waters has pulled the plug on the proposed traffic light at the intersection connecting The Avenue and Market Place Blvd. (Staples and the restaurants).

The developer of The Avenue had to prepare a "traffic study to determine if a traffic signal is warranted at the intersection" (Peachtree City Planning Commission, Nov. 11, 1998). The developer hired Dames and Moore to perform the study. If you will remember, the city officials were so impressed with the work of Dames and Moore that they later hired them as the city's traffic consultant.

At the Aug. 19, 1999, City Council meeting, Dames and Moore and the city's Jim Williams proved that "the traffic model showed that by linking all three major signals with a fiber optic cable, they could control the traffic better by allowing a computer to regulate the timing on the signals."

In addition, Mr. Williams stated that the city staff was convinced "that the additional traffic light [at The Avenue] was desirable and essential to maintaining the current traffic situation in that area." Williams continued, "by installing a traffic signal, using new technology [fiber optics], they could maintain the traffic service at a level 'D'."

Later on at the Aug. 23, 1999, Planning Commission meeting, City Planner David Rast "stated that the City Council's action [Traffic Impact Ordinance] regarding the Hwy. 54 corridor would not affect The Avenue because they had already completed a traffic impact study. This study identified the need for a new traffic signal on Hwy. 54 at one of their entrances across from Market Place Boulevard. This study showed that this traffic signal ... and the installation of a fiber optic cable would maintain and, in some cases, improve the current level of service."

I give you all those long quotations (and I'll spare you may others) to say that the traffic signal was an integral part of the traffic modeling process for the Wal-Mart mitigation plan and the entire Hwy. 54 West corridor. Thanks to GDOT, the model has now been corrupted.

GDOT is even questioning, and rightly so, viability of the "through lane" contained in the Wal-Mart mitigation plan. Why did not anyone from the city get with GDOT and discuss some of these points prior to passing the Wal-Mart plan?

GDOT wants to see some hard data and this causes me to wonder why the city council passed the Wal-Mart plan.

It will be interesting to see if Mayor Lenox discusses the rights of the stores and restaurants already built and in operation that will suffer from the deletion of the traffic signal. All of this is being done so that a Wal-Mart can be forced into the area.

The Avenues and the apartments on Hwy. 54 were not even supposed to get a certificate of occupancy from the city until their traffic lights were installed. Jim Williams (Peachtree City's Monty Hall) made yet another turn-around deal and let them use police officers instead. The big question is how do we plug two police officers into a highly sophisticated fiber optic traffic system?

Now that the model is corrupted, we need to recall the Wal-Mart vote, review the data and have a new vote. With the resignation of Councilman Bob Brooks, either Council member Carol Fritz or Mayor Bob Lenox would have to recall the revised issue for a new vote. The infamous Wal-Mart vote was based upon GDOT approval, which has been severely altered.

Contact both Fritz and Lenox and let them know that we want the engineers from GDOT to present their findings at a council meeting and that we want another vote on the Wal-Mart mitigation plan.

Steve Brown

Peachtree City

Steve_ptc@juno.com

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