Atlanta’s most famous writer, Margaret Mitchell, author of “Gone With the Wind,” was killed in 1949 when struck by a speeding car on Peachtree and 13th streets, just blocks away from where today the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and the new headquarters of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution are located.
“So many people in Atlanta have lost their lives to reckless drivers,” said Veronica Watts, who does public outreach for Emory, and was also run over in Midtown. “I nearly lost my life.”
When she was hit last February at the intersection of Piedmont and North avenues by a driver, Watts joined a growing list of Atlantans who have been hit, maimed or killed by cars. In 2022, 38 people lost their lives, and 548 people were injured by cars, while walking or cycling inside Atlanta city limits – 52% more than in 2020, according to PropelATL, an organization that works to improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
Watts says the only way to bring down the numbers is to change laws at the state level. She says Georgia traffic laws make it possible for drivers involved in serious pedestrian accidents to pay a small fine and walk away from the scene facing few consequences. She hopes her efforts at the Gold Dome will save Atlantans the pain she endured for most of 2024.
The tragedy started on an unseasonably warm winter day, when she was struck at 2 p.m. while attempting to cross the second lane of North Avenue near the Publix supermarket. A driver in the first lane paused, and she attempted to leave the median. But a driver in the second lane sped by, she said, hitting her.
“I crashed into the windshield and was thrown 38 feet. The last thing I remember was screaming, and then I woke up 48 hours later in Grady Hospital breathing through a tube.”
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
She spent the greater part of 2024 recovering from a traumatic brain injury, a broken nose and a contusion in the lower part of her spine.
“The driver walked away with a $250 fine, and is still driving,” Watts added.
This nightmare story doesn’t surprise Judge Gary E. Jackson, who presides over traffic matters in the Municipal Court of Atlanta. Jackson says the state’s traffic laws as written generally require court cases for traffic accidents involving livery drivers, non-U.S. citizens, drivers under 21, and those using a learner’s permit.
However, when Traffic Violations Bureau (TVB) in Atlanta and around the state allow “accident case” fines for other drivers to be paid online, “The driver never comes to court so the victim has no court date to attend and be heard,” he said.
In a statement to the AJC, Judge Jackson continued: “Every victim (including injured pedestrians) has a right by statute to come into court, and if you’re injured, you’re vulnerable. If the case fine can be paid without coming into court, the victim’s rights are not being respected.”
Reform proposals could seek a revised TVB system that Watts hopes will be fairer, and give both prosecutors and judges the chance to supervise dangerous drivers and major offenses.
She also says Atlanta’s poor sidewalk and bike lane infrastructure contribute to the problem, and should raise alarm bells for city and state officials.
A report released in 2024 by Smart Growth America said Georgia’s 5th Congressional District — which includes Atlanta, Sandy Springs, Decatur, College Park and East Point — is the second deadliest congressional district in the United States for pedestrians and cyclists. Though Atlantans in 2022 approved a $147 million investment in 68 sidewalk projects, three years later, the city hasn’t finished any of the sidewalk projects, said Rebecca Serna, executive director of Propel ATL.
Research by the U.S. Department of Transportation found that fear of being hit by a car is the main reason many Americans choose not to walk or bike. The inability to walk places has a negative impact on mental and physical health, the AJC reported previously.
Watts says recent reforms in Alachua County and Gainesville, Florida, aimed at bringing pedestrian deaths to zero could serve as a template for Georgia.
“It’s a bipartisan issue, it affects everyone in Georgia,” Watts said. “It happened to me, and it can happen to you, your family, your friends.”
Credit: AJC
Credit: AJC
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