Georgia will rethink storage under bridges after fire destroyed span

At the press conference, GDOT Commissioner Russell McMurry said the agency is re-evaluating its practice of storing construction materials underneath state bridges. Authorities say a homeless man set a chair on fire under the I-85 bridge, sparking the blaze that was fed by construction material GDOT stored there.

McMurry has said it’s a common practice for transportation departments across the country to store material under highway bridges. But he said Monday that he has informed other departments about the I-85 event so they can review their own policies.

“We certainly will be looking at all things to make sure we never have a catastrophic event like this again,” he said.

Deal said he has asked U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao for more money to cover any extra costs that mass transit agencies incur because of increased ridership.

Deal said the disaster gave Georgia an opportunity to make itself better in what many have called one of its worst issues: traffic.

“As we see more and more people using MARTA and other forms of transportation other than driving their cars, we may see an avenue open up there which was not anticipated,” Deal said. “We’re going to take lemons and we’re going to turn it into lemonade.”

Earlier in the day, GDOT reopened one northbound lane and three southbound lanes on Piedmont Road under I-85. The lanes were to remain open until 9 p.m. Monday, then close for additional work. They were to reopen at 5 a.m. Tuesday and remain open indefinitely.

Meanwhile, on a Monday when the closing of I-85 was expected to strangle traffic — and didn’t — it was two unexpected tragedies that had devastating effects on morning commutes.

First was a multicar crash and vehicle fire near Hill Street on I-20 just east of downtown. One driver was killed, and all westbound lanes of I-20 were closed for about three hours, reopening about 7 a.m.

Then came the homicide of a woman on Peachtree Street near Peachtree Place. Atlanta police closed Peachtree Street from Seventh Street up to 10th street as they investigated the killing.

The Atlanta Police Department described a tragic series of events in the accident that led to the closure of I-20 westbound at the Hill Street interchange

Police, who responded to the scene at 3:42 a.m., said the victim - later identified as 41-year-old Tony Sanford of Fairburn - was driving his Hyundai Elantra westbound on I-20 when he struck a Nissan Murano from behind, causing it to spin out onto the shoulder.

Sanford’s vehicle was disabled in the road. He went to check on the driver of the Murano, then returned to his car. But then a Buick struck the disabled car in the rear. A second vehicle, a Silverado, also struck the Elantra.

Police said those secondary collisions caused the disabled car to catch fire. Sanford was outside the vehicle at the time of those collisions. Police said he died from injuries on the scene. The driver and both passengers of the Buick were transported to Grady Memorial Hospital.

In the other incident, a woman was shot and killed Monday morning on Peachtree Street. The investigation temporarily shut down the busy Midtown road between Seventh and 10th streets from about 8 a.m. to just before 9:30 a.m.

Homicide detectives responded to the incident, according to Atlanta police. A witness told Channel 2 Action News that the woman was shot more than once.

Elsewhere, traffic moved reasonably well Monday morning. I-285 across the top of the city was up to its usual tricks — heavy volume caused slow rides, especially near the I-75 interchange.

“I think things have gone pretty well,” said State Traffic Engineer Andrew Heath, who spent the morning monitoring traffic at GDOT’s Transportation Management Center.

Metro public schools are on spring break, and that helped, Heath said. But there were still trouble spots, including the Buford Spring Connector, Cheshire Bridge Road and Sidney Marcus Boulevard.

Heath said the department has changed the lights on Cheshire Bridge and Sidney Marcus to accommodate the extra traffic generated by the closure of Piedmont Road.

Another factor that may have helped ease Monday's commute: MARTA was doing brisk business.

By 6:15 a.m., trains headed north on the red line were packed with a blend of veteran riders, first-timers and commuting strategists.

Not to mention the slightly bewildered.

“It’s supposed to be right here,” Anita Hewitt said as she studied her phone at North Springs, the northernmost stop on the line. The Austell resident would usually drive to her job in the suburbs, but instead she’d found herself leaving home much earlier (“6 a.m.,” she said with a sigh), getting on a MARTA train at West End and then transferring to the red line. A co-worker had sent her instructions on how to walk from the North Springs station to their place of employment.

The afternoon commute had its own difficulties. A tractor-trailer crash blocked all southbound lanes on I-75 at I-675. And severe storms rolled across metro Atlanta.

Developments in the I-85 bridge collapse