A year into Fulton County's collection of a sales tax to pay for road, bridge and sidewalk improvements, less money is coming in than was projected.

That shortfall could mean some of the lower-priority projects that residents voted on will not be completed unless collections improve.

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One resident said he wants something down to improve safety.

The county expected to bring in $109.3 million for transportation improvements in 2017. Instead, it has collected $94.3 million between April 2017 and the end of March.

Estimates said the tax could raise as much as $655 million over five years.

Todd Long, Fulton County’s chief operating officer, said cities that were paying for transportation improvements with the funds had ranked their projects, and all the highest priority ones could likely still be completed as planned.

In Fulton County outside of Atlanta, residents are paying three-quarters of a penny sales tax for transportation improvements. They approved the five-year measure in 2016 and started collecting taxes last year.

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Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis speaks at a press conference at Fulton County Government Center in Atlanta on Monday, Aug. 14, 2023, following the indictment in an election interference case against former President Donald Trump and others. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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