Writer: Despite changes, Krog Street Tunnel traffic still screwed

Editor’s note: Alongside the eradication of potholes and its infamous “suicide lane,” DeKalb Avenue finally saw infrastructure improvements last year that included left-turn lanes installed for east and westbound vehicles at Krog Street. That’s helped backups on DeKalb Avenue, but as Atlantan Aaron Berk points out—as many readers have echoed in comments and on social media—the left-turn woes around Krog Street Tunnel have hardly been solved.

The impact, per Berk, is being felt for several blocks, across more than one neighborhood.

Berk submits the following, short Letter to the Editor in hopes of reaching city dwellers experiencing similar headaches around the Krog Street Tunnel—and to “possibly be read by someone who could actually make [fixes] happen.” (Note: The Krog Street Tunnel is undergoing nightly closures until March 12, but that involves a stormwater project and not traffic mitigation.) Berk writes:  

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Dear Editor:

As we all know, all of Atlanta is frustrated with the Krog Street Tunnel and how one person making a left onto DeKalb Avenue will cause an immediate backup under the tunnel.  

This was highlighted even more for me when I was on Edgewood Avenue traveling west toward downtown (trying to avoid Krog) and was still affected.

That’s because someone was trying to make a left onto Krog, but there were so many cars backed up going south, Edgewood was completely blocked as well, with cars stuck in traffic stretching back into Inman Park.

I could go on, but I’ll get to the point…

With all the work being done to DeKalb Avenue, who would we need to contact to have them update the signal pattern at Krog and DeKalb so that only one direction could proceed at one time? [Editor’s note: We’ve forwarded this letter, with context, to City of Atlanta and Atlanta Department of Transportation officials.]

That way, all cars could either go straight or make their silly lefts without blocking traffic.

This would also make the Krog Street Tunnel once again famous for being a cool Atlanta landmark, no longer the butt of so many jokes!

Thank you,

Aaron Berk

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