>>1599290I used to agree with you on heavy rail expansion, but the fact is that most suburbanites won't use it even if they had it. Why not focus on more transit in the city for people who actually use it? That would at least get traffic off the surface streets. Right now it feels like our heavy rail is just a way for suburbanites to get to sporting events or the airport.
Biking in Atlanta isn't stupid. It's hilly and humid, sure, but you get stronger and tougher quickly. Ebikes are obviously getting more popular everywhere and basically flatten the hills even for weaker riders. You won't get run over if you plan good routes and the ongoing expansion of bike networks will help with this. Biking here definitely isn't for everyone but that's no reason to discount it as one of many viable car-alternatives.
Atlantic Station is a step in the right direction, but in its current form is basically just an outdoor mall surrounded by apartment buildings. It needs more public spaces (parks, post office, library, etc) to be a "real" neighborhood. They just finished redeveloping the center of the mall area into a pretty decent park so I have hope for their future. Increasing pedestrian/cycling connectivity between Atlantic Station and the surrounding areas would be a big bonus.
