Atlanta red light turn ban tabled until next cycle by city council

ATLANTA — Just days after members of the Atlanta City Council filed new legislation to ban turning right on red lights in parts of the city, actions to implement that plan were tabled.

In a unanimous 7-0 vote, city council members moved to delay the ordinance until more of the details are ironed out with local law enforcement.

The proposal for banning right turns on red lights in Downtown, Midtown and Castleberry Hill in Atlanta was filed by Jason Dozier, Amir Farkohi and Byron Amos.

Dozier, speaking with Channel 2′s Steve Gehlbach, said previously that the parts of Atlanta are high-volume pedestrian zones and contain numerous businesses, residential areas and cultural attractions.

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As a result, the council members’ ordinance would ban turning right at a red light in a safety effort, citing statistics from the Georgia Highway Safety Association that showed in the 40 years or so since red light turns were allowed across the U.S., pedestrian deaths had increased to its highest levels since, and that they were expected to go even higher.

Historically, there was no nationalized policy on right turns on red until 1980, when lawmakers were moved to action during an oil crisis and wanted to use the allowance of turning at a red light to conserve fuel.

However, Dozier and his colleagues’ ordinance says the impact in fuel consumption was “negligible,” instead having a large effect on pedestrian safety.

Speaking to Channel 2 Action News about the impacts of the ordinance, if passed, Dozier said commutes “might extend by a minute or two, but at the end of the day it saves lives,” adding that it was “worth the trade off.”

Due to the vote by council, the legislation has been placed on hold for another cycle, though Dozier said he intends to continue working on the ordinance.

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