Athens-Clarke County officials have ordered a safety study along a heavily traveled road in north Athens following separate crashes that killed three people during the first two months of the year.
Traffic along Tallassee Road, which stretches from the GA-10 Perimeter to Georgia Highway 330 in Jackson County, has steadily increased as numerous residential subdivisions and a school have brought a population boom to the area, according to the Athens Banner-Herald.
As a result, speeding and illegal passing on Tallassee have become a critical concern, said Athens-Clarke County Commissioner Tim Denson, who represents the area along with Commissioner Jesse Houle.
Both officials called on the county’s traffic engineering office to conduct a full safety review of the road, which will include a study of the route’s crash history, the Banner-Herald reported.
Athens-Clarke police will also increase their presence, while a “Roadway Safety Audit Team” will conduct a more thorough examination, Denson said.
“That will be a more expansive study that will not only include them collecting data such as the crash reports and crash history but also doing site visits along the road … seeing how cars are reacting at different points in the road, car volume and all that kind of stuff,” Denson said, according to the Banner-Herald.
Tallassee features a roundabout where it intersects with Whitehead Road, although the circular design is not believed to have caused any of the accidents, Denson said.
One of this year’s fatal collisions happened near the Tallassee railroad bridge, which was built nearly 80 years ago and is being replaced soon, Denson said.
About the Author
