Traffic Studies include site assessments, crash histories, and 24-hour volume or peak-hour turning movement counts. This process can be lengthy due to work required and volume of requests.
Types of Traffic Studies:
- All-Way Stop Warrant Studies follow federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) standards and City of Atlanta procedures to ensure requirements are met for all-way stop operations. Typically, a stop sign is not the appropriate application for traffic calming.
- Traffic Signal Warrant Studies follow federal MUTCD standards.
- Left-Turn Signal Warrant Studies follow Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) standards.
- Residential Permit Parking Studies
The steps for a neighborhood traffic study:
- Step 1: Residents contact their local councilmember, who will work with ATLDOT to coordinate a neighborhood traffic study.
- Step 2: The neighborhood traffic study will be requested at the discretion of the councilmember and only conducted for neighborhoods and not individual streets.
- Step 3: The councilmember will make a request for ATLDOT to conduct a Traffic Engineer's site assessment.
- Step 4: If warranted by the Traffic Engineer’s site assessment, ATLDOT will complete an Engineering Traffic Study. The councilmember will be responsible for funding the Engineering Traffic Study.
Traffic Calming Studies include site assessments and 24-hour speed/volume data.
Types of Traffic Calming:
- Speed Tables force reduced speeds due to the vertical deflection, but also reduce emergency vehicle response time, could create diversions onto adjacent local streets, and may cause increased speeds in between or after the tables. Note: Speed tables are only installed on local streets (not classified as collector or arterial) that meet the speed and volume thresholds and must be supported by 75% of property holders.
- Speed Cushions, Curb Extensions, Roundabouts/Mini Circles, etc. can be implemented based on availability of funding sources for design and construction.
- All measures, with the exception of speed cushions, can be implemented on any street.
- All measures reduce emergency response times.
