Speeding and traffic in downtown Ellijay were discussed at two different points during a May 21 Ellijay City Council meeting.
During the public comment portion of the meeting, local resident Joe Weaver asked if something can be done to control speeding on the lower end of North Main Street near the Ellijay Church of Christ. He invited councilmembers to come sit with him and watch how fast the daily traffic goes by.
“This traffic is unreal,” Weaver said. “It’s (like) Atlanta Speedway. When they get to the Church of Christ, you can hear it. They stomp on it, and they’re gone. Tractor trailers come flying down that hill, and there’s no way they can stop.”
Weaver told councilmembers Thomas Griffith, Claudia Penland, Kevin Pritchett and Al Fuller that he’s concerned about anyone, especially a child, being injured due to the increased speeding. He asked if the 25 miles an hour speed detection sign that’s currently just past the four-way stop near City Hall could be moved farther down the street.
“That side of town is now trying to rebuild and have more people coming down to our area. It’s so dangerous right now,” he added. “Last week, I witnessed a car pass two vehicles on the bridge going north. I’ve witnessed a car passing a bus as it was fixing to stop and pick the children up. Pulling out of my place is like Russian roulette. You’re just taking a chance.”
Mayor Al Hoyle said he and Police Chief Edward Lacey have heard concerns about the speeding and are working on a plan.
“We’re discussing moving the sign, and we’re working on a traffic survey so (the police department) can run radar,” he added.
Chief Lacey also addressed downtown speeding during a pre-meeting workshop.
When the parallel parking spaces on River Street (which the council recently voted to discontinue) are eventually striped off and no cars can park there, that will likely lead to drivers going by at faster speeds, he noted.
“Currently, when (people) turn down River Street, they’re looking for pedestrians to step out between cars and for car doors to open. That’s a de facto traffic calming device,” Lacey said. “Drivers are actually going through there slower because a door or a person is going to come out in front of them. I believe, when we remove both the doors and the people, cars are going to speed up, and we’re going to have increased traffic speeds on River Street.”
The striping could also present an area where pedestrians are more likely to cross the street without using a crosswalk.
“Once we remove all the barriers between the sidewalk and the street, people are just going to be stepping out off the curb,” Lacey said. “Across the safety zone, it’s going to look like a place that’s safe for pedestrians.”
He suggested adding some barriers to River Street that will help funnel pedestrians to the crosswalk and asked the council to consider some traffic calming devices, such as pinch points, in the same area.
Hoyle said designs have already been presented that include some of those features, but councilmembers have not approved any of the proposed designs yet.
Fuller said he thinks an architectural and safety study needs to be done after the parallel spaces are striped off.
“Just for that specific section from Penland’s store up to the crosswalk, I would like for (an engineer) to come in and see how we can temporarily make this work until we have a streetscape,” he added.
In other news ...
Councilmembers heard presentations from students in the Gilmer High School Youth Leadership program.
Two teams of students gave presentations to the council, which were designed to convince them of ways that downtown Ellijay could be improved. The proposals focused on revamping the town square while also preserving its history and the benefits of adding a performing arts amphitheater at Harrison Park.
Giving the presentations were Caden Farist, Lily Thurman, Lucy Ray, James Young and Olivia Shull.