'It's ridiculous!' Official says Atlanta lacks sidewalks for students to get to school

ATLANTA - A top transportation official says the city of Atlanta badly needs sidewalks.

Doug Nagy is not just talking about new sidewalks. More than half of the streets in Atlanta, there are no sidewalks at all.

Atlanta hired a surveyor to go over every mile and see where sidewalks need to be repaired and where a new sidewalk can enhance safety.

Talking about sidewalks can be dry material. Nagy became animated in a discussion with city council members when he discussed roads adjacent to schools that have no sidewalks.

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He pointed to busy Northside Parkway in the northwest section of town.

North Atlanta High school sits just off the road. While many of the students are driven to school, some try to walk to class.

"It's ridiculous," the term Nagy used about the lack of any sidewalk in that portion of Northside Parkway.

That is a state route but the Georgia Department of Transportation is not responsible for funding sidewalks in local jurisdictions.

The Atlanta Transportation Department survey is nearly complete. City leaders will then be given options for how they might pay for sidewalks.

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