Macon Magazine

88 maconmagazine.com | August/September 2026 continue to focus almost exclusively on expanding roads? Or should greater investment go toward sidewalks, transit, and bicycle infrastructure that supports multiple ways of getting around? TR AN SIT MAT TERS (E VEN IF YOU NE VER RIDE IT) Public transportation has never been justified simply because everyone rides the bus. The value of connectivity comes from the opportunities it creates. Transit connects people to work, healthcare, schools, grocery stores, and recreation. It provides independence for seniors who no longer drive, teenagers who cannot yet drive, people with disabilities, and workers whose jobs depend upon reliable transportation. Even residents who never board a bus benefit when more people have access to employment and essential services. Businesses benefit from a larger workforce. Families benefit when transportation costs decline. Congestion can also be reduced when people have meaningful alternatives to driving. The question is not whether everyone rides transit. The question is whether everyone benefits from living in a community where mobility exists. SAFET Y I S DIFFERENT THAN CONGE S TION These funding discussions become even more important when viewed through the lens of safety. Although total crashes in Macon-Bibb County have generally declined over the past several years, pedestrian crashes remain a significant concern. In 2025 alone, the county experienced 105 pedestrian crashes, resulting in 74 pedestrians injured and 12 pedestrian fatalities. Behind every number is a family whose life changed forever when their loved one was hit. Congestion is frustrating. Traffic deaths are permanent. Historically, transportation engineering emphasized moving as many vehicles as possible as efficiently as possible. Today, engineers are increasingly challenged to balance mobility with safety. The research is clear: wider roads often encourage faster driving, and higher speeds dramatically increase both the likelihood and severity of injuries when crashes occur. That is why modern transportation planning increasingly focuses on the concept of "Complete Streets," which means planning safer crossings, traffic calming, better lighting, accessible sidewalks, and bicycle facilities simultaneously to adding any traditional roadway improvements. The goal is not simply to move cars fast on roads. It is to move people to where they need to go safely. UNDERS TANDING LOCAL CONTROL Another challenge often overlooked is that many roads residents think of as "local streets" are actually state roads, maintained by the Georgia Department of Transportation. Corridors such as Riverside Drive, Vineville Avenue, Pio Nono Avenue, Gray Highway, Emery Highway, Mercer University Drive, Broadway, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Spring Street, Walnut Street, Shurling Drive, Hawkinsville Road, Jeffersonville Road, and Ocmulgee East Boulevard are all state highways. Although Macon-Bibb County frequently maintains traffic signals, pavement markings, landscaping, and performs routine maintenance, significant changes such as lane reductions, medians, bike lanes, or pedestrian crossings generally require coordination with and approval from GDOT. This means improving safety is often a shared responsibility rather than a decision made solely at the local level. GET TING TO OUR DE S TINATION The discussion about transportation eclipses just buses, sidewalks, and pavement. It raises one of the defining policy questions communities across America will face over the coming decades. If transportation is no longer viewed primarily as a collective investment, what becomes the responsibility of the individual, and what remains the responsibility of the public? Should homeowners fund sidewalks adjacent to their property? Should transit riders pay the full cost of operating buses? Should drivers alone pay for road improvements? RE ASONABLE PEOPLE CAN DI SAGREE But one principle should unite us regardless of ideology: every resident deserves the opportunity to reach work, school, healthcare, church, parks, and home safely. Transportation is ultimately not about asphalt or concrete. It is about opportunity. It is about independence. And, most importantly, it is about ensuring that everyone in Macon can move through their community safely, regardless of how they choose to travel. Weston Stroud is the traffic safety manager for Macon-Bibb. Get involved with pedestrian safety by following the Pedestrian Safety Review Board and Bike Walk Macon.

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