The Future of Wylie Street

**Update for clarity: Cyclists are encouraged to use the road when traveling on Wylie Street to reduce congestion on the multi-use trail but are also permitted to ride on the trail. 

Many of our neighbors in and around Reynoldstown have asked what will happen when the Eastside Trail is extended down Wylie Street. Most of the Atlanta BeltLine’s construction takes place in old rail corridors, separating trail and transit from on-street traffic. But in some areas, the corridor doesn’t connect perfectly and needs to utilize roadways to complete the loop. This is the case with the Eastside Trail’s southern extension, which is bisected by Hulsey Yard, an active rail yard used by CSX.

This image shows the current conditions at Wylie Street (facing west). Photo: Christopher T. Martin
This image shows the current conditions at Wylie Street (facing west). Photo: Christopher T. Martin

With the old rail corridor terminating at Dekalb Avenue, the trail needs to continue by way of Krog Street and Wylie Street until it can return to the corridor near Flat Shoals Avenue. The challenge of construction down Wylie Street is accommodating the multi-use trail, vehicular traffic, and some on-street parking within a relatively narrow space.

This rendering of the intersection of Pearl Street and Wylie Street shows how on-street parking will be preserved and the trail will follow the road to the north.
This rendering of the intersection of Pearl Street and Wylie Street shows how on-street parking will be preserved and the trail will follow the road to the north. [Click on the image and then zoom in.]
This cross-section of Wylie Street shows the interaction of the trail, landscaping, and motor traffic.
This cross-section of Wylie Street shows the interaction of the trail, landscaping, and motor traffic.

Design for this area calls for a 10-foot multi-use trail on the north side of the road, buffered from traffic by landscaping. On the south side, on-street parking will be preserved where it is presently available, and new crosswalks will accompany sidewalks for pedestrians. Bicycles traveling in either directions will remain on-street, or may walk their wheels on the trail.

Work on the extension has already begun, and Wylie Street will undergo closures within the next several weeks for the first phase of construction. Keep visiting the Atlanta BeltLine blog for specifics on road closures and construction updates.

4 thoughts on this article. Join the discussion below

  1. Forcing cyclists onto the street is unacceptable when pedestrians have a perfectly good existing sidewalk that parallels the new trail on the opposite side of Wylie.

    Consider the following:

    – Pedestrians should be directed across the upgraded crosswalks and onto the pedestrian friendly sidewalk (where bike use is illegal)

    – Cyclists should be directed onto the Beltline trail

    – Cars can continue to drive the street unimpeded by pedestrians or cyclists to be squished

    – The residents keep their on street parking

    Everyone has a place; nobody is marginalized.

    I, for one, have no intention of cycling in the street or walking my bike when the peds have an existing and parallel facility.

    Before Relay Bike Share debuted in June, I really only thought of the Beltline as a recreational linear park that might get transit in the form of light rail someday in the future. In several years, I only used the Beltline a couple of times as a pedestrian.

    However, since becoming a bike share user, I will often use the Beltline more times in a week than I did in all prior years combined. I will often cycle miles out of my way to remain on protected bike routes, and the Beltline is a major connector between Downtown and Midtown even though it is far to the East of many direct routes.

    Now, I view the Beltline primarily as a transportation corridor that keeps cyclists safe. The amount of cycle traffic on the Beltline and the distances covered by cyclists (as opposed to pedestrians) bears this out. Pedestrians are always safer on a sidewalk than cyclists are in the street, and the Beltline is an important part of growing Altanta’s cycling community and keeping them safe.

    Cyclists should never be second class citizens on the Beltline.

    1. Hi Benth,

      Cyclists are encouraged to use the road when traveling on Wylie Street to reduce congestion on the multi-use trail but are also permitted to ride on the trail.

      Thanks for your comment.

    2. Cyclists ride on Wylie Street all the time, and the citizens of Reynoldstown do not “squish” them with their cars. The trail is only 10 feet wide, and the sidewalks on the south side of Wylie are not “perfectly fine” in all areas, nor are they wide enough to handle the volume of people that the Beltline brings. There is a limited amount of room in this area. Insisting on your right to mow pedestrians down with your bicycle on the trail is not realistic.

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