Repairs for Cheshire Bridge Road could take weeks, Atlanta City councilman says

ATLANTA - It looks like parts of Atlanta's busy Cheshire Bridge Road will remain shut down for weeks for needed repairs.

In a newsletter, Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan, who represents the area, said that crews have decided to replace a portion of the bridge and shore up the existing supports instead of rebuilding the entire structure.

Unfortunately, Wan says the repair time for the bridge could be as long as 10 weeks, at which point the entire roadway could be reopened to traffic.

"While the initial approach was to get one or two lanes reopened as soon as possible and continue working on the remainder of the bridge to open it to traffic, it has been determined that it is better long-term to complete the entire rehab work at once," Wan wrote.

That's proving to be a problem for businesses in the area.

"We've been through so much because when the 85 bridge burned down, this was a highway," said George Trusler, a manager at Taqueria del Sol. "Then, we made it through COVID, then we had to make it through that, and now we have another bridge down."

Darryl Newton, who runs the Original Pancake House, agrees it has been a rough few months.

The restaurant faces Lavista Road, which has been closed since November due to the massive apartment complex fire at the Reserve at LaVista Walk. He says business is down about 30-percent.

To help deal with that, they are now adding a 15-percent service charge to all orders. Now, he fears what the bridge closure will do.  

"It's been one thing after another," he said. "This whole area, I don't know what's going on."

Drivers have been asked to avoid the busy Atlanta roadway since the morning of Dec. 20, when firefighters arrived at a raging blaze under the bridge between Faulkner Road and Piedmont Road.

While firefighters were able to put out the flames after a short time, officials told FOX 5 that the bridge appeared to be compromised and not safe to drive over.

This bridge spans over the section of railroad tracks just south of the newly replaced bridge, which was destroyed in a massive fire in August 2021.

With traffic diverted into residential neighborhoods, many business owners in the area are worried that the long repair times could devastate their businesses in the way the previous fire had done.

"You’re cutting off everyone that’s coming from Piedmont, and they might not be familiar with the area … it puts everything in jeopardy," Chris Stark, who owns the Laundry Lounge with his wife, told FOX 5 in December.

He says the road closing has been a hamper on their business which re-located to the area in August.

"We kind of rely on the 10,000 to 15,000 cars that pass by every day, so people will notice the sign and stop in," he stated. "The business saw an immediate decrease in foot traffic."

Stark said he is concerned the growing homeless population in the area could remain an issue and is hoping to see more solutions from city leaders. 

A spokesperson for Atlanta Mayor Andre Dicken tells FOX 5 the city has launched several programs to help members of the homeless community, including millions of dollars invested in a new rapid housing initiative.

In his newsletter, Wan said that the city has removed items from the homeless encampments near the bridge and other nearby overpasses.

"I have discussed directly with the Mayor about a developing and executing strategy to secure these critical infrastructure assets going forward," he said, "This is going to take a sustained, concerted effort with our state partners, which will begin in earnest in January. Partners for HOME is also engaged to support the individuals in the area."

The city's Department of Transportation said they are monitoring traffic in the area closely and will implement mitigation measures if needed.

With this being the second bridge fire on Cheshire Bridge Road in the last few years, Councilman Wan said the city is looking at ways to deal with the problem. People who live nearby agree something has to change.

"Our city leaders need to take a lesson from this," said Gil Shillcutt. "Think a little bit outside the box in order to provide a space for people that obviously need to get away from the elements [and] have an opportunity to do so."