Title:
Bridges of the BeltLine

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(Final 2.0) Bridges of the Beltline - Final Report - April 2022.pdf (1.29 MB)
Author(s)
LaForce, Salimah
 Gilliland, Scott
 Evans, Jeff
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http://hdl.handle.net/1853/70215
Abstract
As currently realized, the Atlanta BeltLine weaves under, over, and through a multitude of overpasses, footbridges, and tunnels. As in any city, this significant feature is simultaneously an asset and a potential hazard. These types of structures are "vulnerable critical facilities" that should be included in emergency risk assessments and mitigation planning (FEMA, 2013). As such, the Bridges of the BeltLine project was proposed as a mixed-methods study to understand how people's movement along the BeltLine can inform emergency management mitigation, planning, and response. Understanding pedestrian flow in cities has been underfunded and understudied but is nonetheless critical to city infrastructure monitoring and improvement projects. This study focused on developing inexpensive, low-power consumption sensors capable of detecting human presence while preserving privacy, as well as a survey designed to collect data that the sensors cannot. The survey data were intended to describe BeltLine users, querying on demographics, reasons, frequency, duration of use, and mode of travel to and on the BeltLine. After conferring with the Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. (ABI) leadership, it became apparent that ABI's primary interest is in understanding which communities are being served by the BeltLine and whether it has changed commuting and travel behaviors or created new demand. As a result, the project's original focus on emergency management was expanded to explore which communities are being served and for what kind of use. As such, the project's revised objective was two-fold: to facilitate understanding of (a) whether the BeltLine is serving the adjacent communities and purpose of use and (b) to inform emergency mitigation, planning, and response.
Sponsor
This research was made possible by a grant from Georgia Tech's Executive Vice President of Research, Small Bets Seed Grants program, with supplemental funding from the Center for the Development and Application of Internet of Things Technologies (CDAIT).
Date Issued
2022-04
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Technical Report
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