Sandy Springs roadway turns deadly
A stretch of Johnson Ferry Road has turned deadly as two people were killed in separate accidents less than a week and a few hundred feet apart.
Sandy Springs police blame the December deaths on excessive speed through the 1.4-mile construction zone between Abernathy and Riverside roads. The Georgia Department of Transportation is widening the stretch from four to six lanes to carry the roughly 40,000 vehicles that cross the Chattahoochee each day commuting back and forth from Cobb County.
"At night, that stretch seems to be especially dark and unlit," said Patricia Sullivan of Marietta.
Traveling westbound at night can be particularly daunting. Crossing Abernathy, motorists first hit uneven pavement. Orange barrels line the roadside, and white reflective strips mark the lanes as the roadway curves. Then, as drivers approach a sudden and sharp curve, the roadway dips to a steep grade.
"I have traveled this route many times, and I have always thought that curve was dangerous," said Sullivan, mother of three driving-age children. "Your car invariably picks up speed as you descend toward the intersection at Riverside Drive, and you have to brake."
The fatal accidents happened near Riverside Drive.
Christina Emily Wofford, 21, of Marietta was killed in the early morning of Dec. 15 when she was thrown from her westbound car after it left the roadway. Five days later, 46-year old Ellen Landsman of Marietta died when her car crossed the center line and struck another vehicle around 11 p.m.
Since then, police have stepped up patrols near the site, issuing more than 300 citations and making 18 arrests.
But Sandy Springs Police Chief Terry Sult said his officers are limited because state law prohibits the use of speed detection devices along areas with steep grades and with limited line-of-sight.
"People are expected to travel the speed limit regardless of what the grade is," he said.
The speed limit along Johnson Ferry between Abernathy and Riverside is 35 mph.
In the hours preceding the second fatality, police issued four speeding citations on Johnson Ferry in the general vicinity of the accident. Of those four violations, the slowest speed recorded was 57 mph.
"I'd say if you go out there and watch traffic you would be hard-pressed to find too many people driving 35 miles per hour," said Georgia DOT spokesman Mark McKinnon. "We tested that speed limit and we know [it] is safe."
McKinnon said there are no plans to alter the project, although two improvements should make the route less dangerous.
The road will be widened to six lanes -- three westbound and three eastbound. Also, engineering plans call for the road to bank outward along the sharp curve to help drivers control their vehicles.
Completion date for the work is December 2012.
Johnson Ferry Road has been the subject of a feud between Cobb and Fulton counties for more than two decades. Neither side could agree on a plan to widen the road, so frustrated Cobb officials took the initiative to expand the roadway on their side of the river in 1996. Since then, bottlenecks have been routine on the Cobb side of the river as the road narrows from six to four lanes.
