I've Sent My Maintenance Requests to GDOT & Public Works. Please Send Yours! (Atlanta: home, construction)

[architect77]

I've sent an exhaustive list of all the problems that need addressing in just three relatively small geographic areas.

Please send yours, because there ain't nobody out there evaluating our rapidly deteriorating infrastructure.

I'm so happy to have this off my plate, it's been nagging at me for months.

It makes me mad that the recently re-installed sharp curve arrows on Buford Hwy Connector Southbound are already falling over.

The first one was falling the VERY NEXT DAY after I saw the worker out there.

Now another one is falling over merely weeks after installation.

Then there's the fact they first appear 50% into the curve, serving virtually no purpose as a warning to slow down.

Here's my list send to as many GDOT email addresses I could find:






URGENT ITEMS NEEDING REPAIR IN ATLANTA, DORAVILLE & i-85 IN GWINNETT

PLEASE SEE ALL ATTACHED PHOTOS OF MAINTENANCE ITEMS.

I APOLOGIZE FOR THE BROAD REACH OF THIS EMAIL, PLEASE FWD TO APPROPRIATE DEPTS. THANK YOU, STEPHEN EDWARDS 404-520-5644

BUFORD HWY CONNECTOR
1) Recently installed curve arrows--TWO SIGNS AREADY FALLING OVER-PLEASE REPAIR ASAP with sturdier poles & a desire for high-quality workmanship. Also signs first appear over halfway into curve after you've already careened over the wall as 3 died in 2016.
2) yellow caution sign needs repair between Piedmont Exit & I-85
3) Speed limit signs need side mount onto concrete barrier for better stability, install higher out of reach for less graffiti.
4) Lane signs on Sidney Marcus and Buford Hwy at Lenox AREN'T ALIGNED over the correct lanes, thus serving no purpose. TEACH MAINTENANCE CREWS that the signs hang directly over the lane being described.
5) Exit ramp for I-57/I-85 Southbound is backed up all day everyday. It needs to be converted to double lanes, and the queue needs to be expanded as much as it around overpass structure. THE GOAL IS TO GET AS MANY CARS AS POSSIBLE OUT OF THE WAY OF THRU TRAFFIC REMAINING ON BUFORD HWY CONN.--This is an easy and cheap solution that would greatly reduce the weaving of cars around this bottleneck. Other states would have fixed this years ago.


SIDNEY MARCUS at GA400
1) How could faded, unreadable, peeling signs be overlooked & not replaced during recent huge flyover project? This is in-a-nutshell what's wrong with Georgia's state agencies--no oversight, no pride or desire to keep up with other states who are progressing. ALL HAZARDOUS MATL SIGNS for GA400 need replacing starting on I-85.
2) Damaged Senior sign on Sidney Marcus at GA400 ramps needs replacing.
3) Lane signs on Sidney Marcus at GA400 aren't aligned to the lanes at all, they're clustered, even overlapping.
4) "To lenox Rd" signs hanging over the grass median, no follow-up sign upon having to make left or right at Buford Hwy.
5) Lane signs on Buford Hwy at Lenox need to move directly over lane being described.
6) Faded, 25yr-old interstate shields on Lenox at Buford Hwy need replacing. Also replace faded acncient shields at 2161 Monroe Drive. I've been trying to get these replaced for 8 years.
7) Duplicate yield signs at Sidney Marcus/ Buford Hwy intersection, remove one of them.
8) Lights in tunnel underpass on Buford Hwy haven't worked in over 10 years. Atlanta public works says it's your responsibility.

MONTHS OF TRASH/ BLOCKED DRAINS ON FLYOVERS
1) Please remove embarrassing trash on "To Peachtree St" flyover southbound from I-85. Old car bumpers, blocked drains.
2) Spaghetti Junction- all flyovers have substantial trash. Please remove.
3) Buford Hwy Connector & all its ramps need trash removed and subsequently cleaned on regular basis. AFTER 25 YEARS OF SPOTLESS FREEWAYS & RAMPS, WHAT CHANGED to allow all of this road trash buildup? Intown freeways cleaning shouldn't be associated with mowing. PLEASE COORDINATE with Atlanta Public Works to get our clean roadways back.
4) I-20 WEST needs thorough removal of trash, which was ignored during recent repaving project. This is everyone's first impression of Atlanta driving in from all the way to California. It reflects on the all of us & and the state. AREN'T YOU EMBARASSED WHEN YOUR HOME STATE IS STREWN WITH 3RD-WORLD LEVELS OF TRASH?

PONCE DE LEON AVE SIGNAGE NOT MAINTAINED IN LAST 30 YEARS- 75% NEEDS REPLACING
1) Starting at Peachtree St. heading east, every small sign, most shield assemblies, all "signal ahead" needs replacing (no upkeep in last 30 years.)
2) In fact all major roads need evaluating, see attached photo of shields on Chamblee Tucker Rd that defy explanation, they look 3rd-world country bad.

SEVERAL NEW HUGE SIGNS ON I-75, I-85 ARE ALREADY SPLITTING APART DOWN THE MIDDLE
1) Perhaps you should look at the visibly-different construction of large signs used by most other states. I've never them split apart, especially when virtually new.
2) New signage and sign bridges on I-75 North look quite good and level. GREAT JOB!

I-85 IN GWINNETT: ALL SIGN BRIDGES LEAN DOWN TOWARD CENTER DIVIDER--NONE ARE VISUALLY LEVEL
1) Why is GDOT incapable of erecting overhead signage and support that appear visually level, something all other states achieve effortlessly?
2) A sign bridge just before Jimmy Carter Blvd on I-85 Northbound is at least 10 degrees off-kilter. It makes Georgia look like something on Hee-Haw! It might be the nation's worst installation. It's embarrassing. PLEASE RAISE LEFT SIDE BY ADJUSTING LEVELING BOLTS OF THIS & ALL INWARD-LEANING SIGN STRUCTURES THROUGH GWINNETT.---COSTS VIRTUALLY NOTHING TO ADJUST THOSE BOLTS WITH IMMENSE PAYOFF.
3) There are too many rusted & under-utilized signs structure in Gwinnett. About 30% could be removed, greatly improving the aesthetics of the highway.
4) Even all of the new shoulder lane mast-arm poles are leaning over towards roadway. The pole is clearly a right angle & the top member should be parallel to the ground.
5) I-85 through Gwinnett was attractive back in the 90's. Because of the large toll signs, every effort to reduce number of structures should be pursued

SHOULDER SIGNS METRO-WIDE TOO FLIMSY--DAMAGED, WARPED BY MERELY WIND!!
1) They need more substantial post & concrete footings, and the hundreds of warped signs on I-75, I-85 never get repaired & remain looking awful indefinitely.
2) Please just simply drive out of Atlanta on all freeways and take inventory of damaged shoulder signs.
3) MARTA Park & Ride signs haven't been replaced since the 1996 Olympics, color has faded away, and the warped sign under spaghetti junction hasn't been fixed in 15 years, and it greets everyone coming in from I-85 and the Northeast like a rotten tooth.

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

[tikigod311]

Kudos for helping keep GDOT on task! I have found that simply reaching out to DOTs can frequently net results.

I think it sucks that we have to remind people who are paid to do these things to do their job, but it is frequently necessary. I would love to see more accountability from DOTs and Public Works depts. Seems to often they do the bare minimum.

[bmw335xi]

You should work at GDOT, very thorough

[architect77]

I received a message today from someone at the District 7 office which I appreciate.

However, "lack of funding" is the default excuse for everything.

Funding has nothing to do with the haphazard positioning of lane signs on Sidney Marcus Blvd or the recently re-installed arrows on the Buford Hwy Connector heading into Midtown that are already falling over.

The workers just don't care at all.

Everything is crooked on Atlanta's roads, and now the poor installation of those yellow boxes around the traffic signals is even preventing gravity from proper positioning. The area around Ptree-Dekalb Airport has these signals angled every which way but up and down.

[Iconographer]

You are dead center on target with this one. +1 for you.

[samiwas1]

The loop from I-75 Southbound to I-85 Northbound looks like a scene from The Walking Dead. Seriously...crumbled concrete strewn everywhere, knocked-over signs littering the area, and always pieces of cars left from however many people crash there every day.

Yeah, Georgia does a terrrrrrrrible job of maintaining even the simplest things. But beyond "funding", I think a lot of it just comes down to "f*** you!". Have you ever worked with those types of people who seem to intentionally do things wrong just so that when you mention it, they can say "F*** you...if you don't like it, leave!" or something? I feel like that's how GDOT operates.

I could easily spend all day, if not a week, creating a map of things like this. In fact, I almost want to...I'll just add it to my other 900 week-long projects.

[bornjacksonian]

Great job!!! I will make sure I add my two cents in to GDOT as well. I am sick of those "Keep Moving" signs when you get off on La Vista Road off 285. Those cars should yield, it is almost an accident every day.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by architect77

I received a message today from someone at the District 7 office which I appreciate.

However, "lack of funding" is the default excuse for everything.

Funding has nothing to do with the haphazard positioning of lane signs on Sidney Marcus Blvd or the recently re-installed arrows on the Buford Hwy Connector heading into Midtown that are already falling over.

The workers just don't care at all.

Everything is crooked on Atlanta's roads, and now the poor installation of those yellow boxes around the traffic signals is even preventing gravity from proper positioning. The area around Ptree-Dekalb Airport has these signals angled every which way but up and down.

They do actually seem to read letters.

Signage is awful all over Atlanta. Seems to be written for people who drive the road every day and don't really need the sign.

[arjay57]

Sticking it to the man. Way to go, architect77!

[SAAN]

Im glad its not just me that notices the DOT doesnt care anymore.
-They pave roads, some times in strange patches and put the lines on them sometime weeks later.
-Pot holes bigger than cars all over.
-The famous lines that were put on atlanta expressways that peeled off.
-Poor sign placement, faded signs, broken signs.
-Construction projects that seem to take twice as long as they did a decade ago.