The Bridge is Over...Part I

On Thursday, March 30, Atlanta was hit with an event that was as devastating as Snowmageddon 2014. Interstate 85 was shut down in both northbound and southbound directions. There was a fire under a part of I-85 that was so massive, that traffic could not pass in either direction due to the thick black smoke. Firefighters were on the scene working diligently for over 90 minutes without the fire dissipating at all. Two fire trucks from the airport were called in to lend their assistance in the matter. The Airport Fire Rescue sprayed the foam that is used to put out jet fuel on the fire. After about 30 minutes, the unthinkable happened. A portion of I-85 fell! An entire block of the thoroughfare that a quarter of a million people travel on a daily basis, collapsed, disappeared, fell onto street below! Up until that point, the game plan was to put out the fire and then the traffic and everyone's commute would continue with no problems. Now, what is the city going to do? How will the quarter of a million drivers navigate in, around and through Atlanta now? Snowmegeddon was a hard lesson learned and now I-85 collapse will pose the same challenge, for a longer period of time.

Was this mishap necessary to show how Atlanta needs to provide alternatives to commuting into the city? Have we gone dependent on our cars to where change is inevitable? This situation will answer all questions in that matter. MARTA is public transportation for the city, but does not reach the places north of the city where most commuters reside. It was not MARTA's choice to not be available, it was the vote of the residents of the areas that did not want public transportation in their areas. There are the more personal modes such as carpooling, UBER, LYFT and taxis. All of which will be a vehicle in the chaos of travel to the city. Is this a wake up call for all of the OTP (outside the perimeter) dwellers? In case of an emergency, how do I get out of the city? This is the dilemma faced by not only the 250,000 commuters, but the decision making bodies in the government, state and local.

This happened on a Thursday, which meant that these same people that got home several hours later than normal would possibly be looking for a new route to work on Friday. The possibility of the mishaps and frustration prompted Dekalb County Schools to cancel school on that Friday for the safety of the children. Parents would have had to find new routes to school due to crowded streets, students walking would be faced with more traffic than usual, which put them in danger and commuters becoming frustrated trying to find their way. Friday was okay for the students. The city was as normal considering, but school was on spring break. Mayor Kasim Reed offered this advice for Monday, "Don't leave for work Monday without a full tank of gas."

People have been apprehended for commiting arson. Schools have had time to devise plans and new routes. The GaDOT has already begin demolition of the six parts of I-85 that need to be replace. This process of rebuilding will go into the summer. Again, the bridge is over and what has Atlanta learned from the crippling transportation infrastructure.