Gangbusters new construction in recent years has given Atlanta “the U,” a nearly 17-mile stretch of continuous Beltline trails that stitches together myriad neighborhoods, with the remaining five miles either in final planning stages or under construction now. 

But the productivity hasn’t been without headaches. 

In less than a year, two crucial Beltline trail connections and a towering new trail bridge have had to be altered or redone, causing closures or significant construction delays at points across the city, from Grant Park to Midtown and southern Buckhead. 

Is it a troubling trend—or simply growing pains to be expected from a transformative urban reclamation project of such immense scale? 

Following the latest closure and rebuild of connective stairs along the recently completed Southside Trail, we asked Beltline officials for a cost estimate of repairs for each project—and for information on who exactly is covering that cost, in each case. 

According to Beltline spokespeople, no cost estimates for any of the three rectification projects are currently available. Kynthia Gaines, the Beltline’s vice president of design and construction, did relay the following information for each project this week, starting with the most recent: 

Connective stairs at Grant Street (Southside Trail)

Just in time for 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Beltline completed its full Southside Trail in June. A large stairway branching off the trail provided new connectivity down to Grant Street, The Beacon mixed-use district, and Grant Park beyond. Until it didn’t. 

The Beltline’s engineer of record in August identified “several cosmetic and dimensional deficiencies” during final inspections of the stairs, necessitating changes and temporary closure. (Upon a visit two weeks ago, the stairs had been fully ripped out.) The Beltline’s project page lists a frequent collaborator, Reeves Young construction company, as the contractor. 

Closed access and removed stairs at the connection between the Beltline and Grant Park's The Beacon district this month. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

According to Gaines, contractors are now correcting “cosmetic and layout issues” pinpointed in the Beltline’s inspection, with fixes scheduled to be complete by late October. Nearby, an access point at Hill Street offers an alternate connection to the Southside Trail. 

“It is the contractor’s responsibility to ensure quality of the work is up to the Beltline’s Design and Construction standards, and the contractor is responsible for the costs to correct the issue,” Gaines wrote in an emailed statement.  

Connective ramp to Ponce de Leon Avenue (Eastside Trail) 

After the Eastside Trail opened to great fanfare in 2012, Atlantans waited more than a dozen years for a safe, easy-breezy connection point down to Ponce de Leon Avenue’s commercial zones. That pedestrian ramp finally arrived late last year, but problems have resulted in closures. 

In this case, the Beltline selected contractor JHC Construction to build the steel ramp, stairs, and railings at the southwestern corner of the Eastside Trail’s Ponce De Leon Avenue bridge.

Contributed photo via Kevin Lynch, Knapp Commercial Advisors

According to Gaines, the connective ramp remains open while the Beltline addresses two issues. 

“First, the orientation of a metal grate on the landing, and second, damaged mesh near the ramp,” wrote Gaines. “The mesh damage was caused by a trail use incident—not from normal wear and tear.” 

Repair work is expected to be completed within a few weeks, according to Gaines. 

Landmark, 160-foot Peachtree Creek suspension bridge (Northwest Trail—Segment 1) 

By far the largest corrective work underway today involves a 160-foot-long suspension bridge over Peachtree Creek in the southern reaches of Buckhead that promises to be a visual and functional highlight of the full 22-mile Beltline loop. 

But nearly a year after the sweeping, custom bridge was put in by contractor Reeves Young, the whole thing was largely disassembled this past spring. 

Removal of the bridge has knocked back the scheduled completion of Northwest Trail—Segment 1 by roughly two years, from June this year to mid-2028, according to Atlanta Beltline Inc.’s latest estimates. 

Planned look of the suspension bridge over Peachtree Creek as part of Northwest Trail Segment 1.PATH Foundation/Atlanta Beltline Inc.

The bridge structure's deconstruction status at Peachtree Creek in March. Submitted

Beltline officials told Urbanize Atlanta in March an independent review found a significant engineering issue that had arisen during a concrete deck pour at the bridge project.

The most recent Beltline construction update available indicates Reeves Young will restart bridge demolition work by the end of 2026—and that three tiers of elevated trail will also have to be taken out and reconstructed to allow for installation of a replacement bridge. 

As of last month, a Beltline design team reported that designs for a replacement suspension bridge were 60 percent complete.  

Who’s at fault in this case—and if taxpayers will ultimately foot the bill—apparently still isn’t clear. Buckhead.com reported in May the bridge section of the trail is a $3.6-million project and that construction deficiencies had been so severe a single pedestrian could cause “noticeable swaying,” among other issues.  

“The Peachtree Creek pedestrian bridge remains the subject of ongoing discussions between Atlanta Beltline Inc. and the project contractor,” wrote Gaines this week. “Because those discussions are active, ABI is not able to comment further at this time. ABI’s focus is on completing the remaining work and opening the bridge for public use.”

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