Temporary blockage of eight parallel parking spaces on the north end of River Street has begun and will last for the next few months.
Police Chief Ed Lacey said the barricades were put up at the direction of the Ellijay City Council last Wednesday.
They are part of a test period recommended by the Downtown Development Authority to gauge whether restricting the parking spaces will improve downtown pedestrian safety and traffic flow. The plans were approved by the city council at a regular meeting held earlier this month.
An electronic speed sign has also been put up on a nearby streetlight pole to collect data on traffic headed eastbound on River Street, noted Lacey.
Because the flashing speed display always slows folks down, the sign has been put in “ghost mode” to collect data only, he added.
Less than a week into the test period, Lacey said there have been mixed reviews from the public on the parking spaces being unavailable.
“Some motorists have said they like not worrying about pedestrians stepping out from between vehicles, (and) it does appear that vehicles coming onto River Street from Church Street have a better view of oncoming traffic as their view is not blocked by cars parked on River Street,” he said.
“It also appears that there are fewer pedestrians in the roadway, and more pedestrians are using the crosswalks. Of course, the test is in its earliest stages and only time will tell.”
Downtown Ellijay restaurateur Marcelo Sandrini runs two River Street businesses, Ellijay Wood Fired Pizza and Kasei Sushi and Sake, that currently have parking barricades in front of them.
Sandrini said downtown Ellijay has been seeing thousands of visitors on its busiest days, and there’s plenty of nearby parking available.
“The trial is to see if it will make downtown safer. If it does, it benefits all businesses downtown, visitors and residents of the county. I also think the merchants along River Street can benefit from increased visibility of their storefronts with the high volume of traffic here,” he added.
The DDA has suggested the parking spaces remain blocked until Jan. 2.
Data collected from the speed sign will be used to determine if vehicle speeds were affected positively or negatively by the barricades being up, Lacey noted.
“We placed the sign out a week prior to deploying the barricades, and it will remain out until at least a week after the barricades come down. We will compare the data that was collected with the barricades and without (them),” he added.