 |
| March 20, ~4pm: road closed for sign installation. |
Work has begun to make Blackmon Dr. a right-out only turn at Scott Blvd. This means that
- there will be no access to Blackmon Dr. and the Medlock neighborhood from Scott Blvd. except for emergency vehicles, and
- there will be a new crossing light to facilitate pedestrian access between the neighborhood and the new developments at Decatur Crossings.
We are not sure when work will be completed. The installation of the crossing light started today (March 20) and likely will take several days. It would be best to avoid the intersection and be extra-aware of traffic in the general vicinity over the next few days, as there is bound to be some confusion. UPDATE: Fuqua Development has informed us that the project should take ~10 days to complete, and paving should be completed by Friday. There will be a 20-day "flashing burn-in" period (to alert drivers to the changes) but the intersection will be operational during that period.
As discussed in this July 2015
post that summarized negotiations with Fuqua Development, this change in traffic pattern was negotiated "to eliminate right turns into the neighborhood from west-bound traffic during the morning rush hour as well as greatly reduce afternoon traffic using Blackmon to exit the neighborhood."
Blackmon Drive is a narrow and curving road that has been handling unsafe levels of traffic for quite some time. Reducing traffic and adding a crossing light should create a safer access point for pedestrians and cyclists in the area (relative to braving the 6-way intersection at Medlock Rd./Scott Blvd./N. Decatur Rd., that is).
We are not exactly sure what the finished product will look like, but it should function as outlined in the image below.
 |
| New traffic patterns at the Blackmon and Scott Blvd intersection. Click to enlarge. |
Below, the new crosswalk seen in the context of new, nearby commercial and residential (re)developments.
