Atlanta’s commute gets tougher
ATLANTA — The suspect is in jail.
But that is little comfort to the hundreds of thousands of Atlanta commuters trapped in the nightmare that authorities say he caused. A giant concrete slab of Interstate 85 — which carries 250,000 vehicles a day — collapsed during rush hour Thursday in a fire that police say was set by 39-yearold Basil Eleby, who is homeless and has a string of drug and assault arrests.
Authorities say it could take 10 weeks to reopen the freeway.
As commuters contemplate how to get to work and back, the city is forced to confront its massive sprawl, dependence on the automobile and lack of investment in public transportation.
The experience is also leading to lots of fingerpointing — beyond Eleby, who faces charges of arson and criminal damage to property, and the two people arrested with him and charged with criminal trespassing. The three discussed smoking crack cocaine beneath the overpass before the fire started, according to an arrest warrant.
In an article headlined, “Sure. Blame The Crackhead,” George Chidi, a journalist for Georgiapol.com, rebuked the media for letting officials off the hook.
He and others seized on the fact that the state Transportation Department had provided the fuel for the fire: flammable spools of highdensity polyethylene conduit left under the bridge.
“Whoever is responsible for storing material under the interstate that could melt a bridge had better still be in prison when Eleby gets out,” Chidi wrote. “The Department of Transportation bears the true burden for this disaster.”
Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry said at a news conference Tuesday that the material was kept there, behind a fence with a locked gate, for other projects and to save tax dollars. He has asked the state fire marshal and insurance commissioner to reevaluate the practice.
This week, commuters woke up before dawn to scour apps that lead them on long detours on narrow city streets or around the perimeter of Atlanta.
Many sought to avoid roads altogether by working from home or taking public transportation.
On a typical day, 400,000 people use the rail and bus lines of MARTA, the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. The number on some lines Monday was up 50%.
Many commuters looked befuddled as they took trains Monday for the first time. “It’s adding two hours a day to my commute, but I don’t have a choice,” said Jon Stokes, 50, a property tax manager for Coca-Cola who took a bus and a train downtown from Buford, more than 35 miles away.
For decades, efforts to expand the public transit system were blocked by suburban voters who feared it would bring the inner city to their communities. Five years ago, voters rejected a $7.2-billion plan to improve the area’s traffic congestion.
Last year, Atlantans voted overwhelmingly to allow tax hikes to upgrade roads and expand rail and bus transit. But it will take years to see those benefits.