Three one-way Midtown streets are getting a two-way overhaul

Transportation infrastructure changes afoot in MIdtown could make life easier for cyclists and pedestrians—and yes, drivers, too—according to Midtown Alliance.

In April, the City of Atlanta signed off on a project that will convert sections of 3rd, 4th, and 13th streets from one-way streets into two-way streets.

Near John Portman and Associates’s under-construction 712 West Peachtree office tower, which will be anchored by health care company Anthem, a strip of 3rd Street between Spring and West Peachtree streets is primed for the two-way update.

So is the piece of 3rd Street running between Peachtree and Juniper streets, just north of the Fox Theatre.

Midtown Alliance

A roughly half-mile section of 4th Street, stretching west from Myrtle to Spring Street, is also on track for the two-way conversion; ditto for a small part of 13 Street spanning from Juniper Street east toward Piedmont Park.

These projects, completely funded by the Midtown Improvement District, are some of the last remaining east-west conversions planned for the neighborhood. They’re expected to “improve the efficiency of the Midtown street grid on several fronts, including creating safer conditions for people walking,” according to a blog post by Midtown Alliance officials.

Turning these one-ways into two-directional roads also allows motorists and cyclists easier access to destinations to their north and south. And the changes should help slow traffic and make the street grid less confusing—especially for visitors, the post says.

The initiative is designed to work hand-in-hand with Midtown Alliance’s Last Mile Intersection Improvement Project, which is bringing new traffic lights and upgraded pedestrian crossing hardware to a few neighborhood intersections.

The construction contract is currently out for bid, and work is slated to launch in coming weeks.