Atlanta officials considering banning right turns on red

Atlanta lawmakers are considering a new city ordinance that would make turning right at red stoplights illegal in certain neighborhoods.

Several members of the Atlanta City Council introduced the plan at a meeting earlier this week, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. 

The ordinance would make turning right on red illegal in Downtown, Midtown and Castleberry Hill.

The proposal is supported by 11 of the 16 members of the city council. They say the three neighborhoods named in the ordinance are home to cultural attractions, businesses and homes that bring in heavy pedestrian traffic.

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Officials argue the ordinance would make these neighborhoods safer for pedestrians and foster "a sense of community, encourage social interaction, and support local businesses, therefore contributing to the overall quality of life."

Councilman Jason Dozier, who co-sponsored the legislation, told Fox News Digital that he proposed the ordinance because Atlanta has seen a significant rise in pedestrian injuries and fatalities due to car collisions. 

"We've seen a 50% increase in pedestrian deaths since 2020, and 38 pedestrians died on Atlanta's streets last year as a consequence," Dozier said in an emailed statement. "When cars are allowed to turn at red lights, they typically creep into crosswalks, with drivers looking only for oncoming cars rather than pedestrians or cyclists. Even worse, vehicle sizes have ballooned over the last 20 years, so even if a driver were looking for a pedestrian, bigger blind spots and narrower sight lines make it difficult to see them. Crosswalks represent some of the very little space that our cities afford pedestrians, and this legislation attempts to protect that space." 

A dramatic rise in accidents killing or injuring pedestrians and bicyclists has pushed several U.S. cities to consider bans on turning right on red. 

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Washington, D.C.’s City Council in 2023 approved a right-on-red ban that takes effect in 2025. New Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s transition plan called for "restricting right turns on red," but his administration hasn’t provided specifics. The college town of Ann Arbor, Michigan, now prohibits right turns at red lights in the downtown area.

San Francisco leaders recently voted to urge their transportation agency to ban right on red across the city, and other major cities such as Los Angeles, Seattle and Denver have looked into bans as well.

New York City has a longstanding prohibition on right turns at red lights, with large signs notifying drivers that they may not do the commonplace maneuver while in Manhattan. 

There is no recent research on how many people nationwide are hurt or killed by right-turning drivers. 

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Advocates for the bans and critics have pointed to a 1994 report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to Congress that analyzed four years of crash data from Indiana, Maryland and Missouri and three years of data from Illinois. The report counted 558 injury crashes and four fatalities caused by right turns on red.

According to data from Propel ATL, an organization that advocates for transit and pedestrian safety in Atlanta, 38 pedestrians died in crashes in 2022, an increase of 23% over 2021's casualties, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. 

The group reports that just 10% of Atlanta's streets account for half of its deadly pedestrian crashes and 60% of its total pedestrian and bicycle crashes, according to FOX 5 Atlanta. 

"Even though we talk about this legislation in terms of motorists and pedestrians, this is a people-centered policy aimed at keeping people safe, particularly our most vulnerable residents," Dozier said. 

"People want to be where they feel safe, and something as simple as making it easier for families to cross the street goes a long way towards creating a culture and community centered on safety," he explained. "This is especially important for our local businesses as higher foot traffic leads to higher sales and revenues. Businesses thrive where people want to be. We saw this in real time during the pandemic as businesses moved dining areas out onto sidewalks or into reclaimed parking spaces. Walkability is not only good for people, but it's good for our local economies, and this legislation encourages that." 

The Atlanta City Council Transportation Committee will consider the ordinance at a meeting next Wednesday. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.