We’ve discussed traffic fatalities around Atlanta for a long time here, especially when the peds, cyclists and drivers are all trying to blame each other for their respective problems.  Unfortunately we didn’t have this very informative new map by ITO, which maps every single road fatality in the U.S. from 2001-2009, available to us then.   But we do now!

If you zoom in close enough, not only does it inform you of the gender, age and date of the incident, but it also color-codes the victim by their mode of transit.

There are indeed many takeaways from such a map – and I’m certainly hopeful that you all will point out some other good ones – but looking primarily at the Decatur area first, it’s sort of incredible the almost complete lack of fatalities within the city limits, especially when it comes to pedestrians.  Zoom out a bit more – so that Peachtree Street is on the far left of the map and Stone Mountain is at the right – and the void of icons in and around the Decatur area is truly impressive.  (And this ain’t no tranquil ‘burb area, we’re talking about a fully functional downtown with lots of traffic lights, intersections, crosswalks and whatnot!)

We talk a lot about the health incentives of a more walkable community around these parts, but the general lack of you know…DEATH…from various means of transport is often  understated.  I try not to get all that preachy around here anymore, but it seems to me that any inconvenience that we may have to shoulder due to Decatur’s old and newly “walkable scale” is well worth knowing that you’re a little less likely to be, you know, dead, based solely on your – and others – transportation choices.

Heather wrote in yesterday…

We live in Oakhurst, on Greenwood Place near College Avenue. Sunday night our family went to dinner, after my daughter had ridden her bike up and down our street a few times. We keep our bikes unlocked, but so far haven’t had a problem since they are pretty well hidden from passers-by. When we returned home, there was a bike that did not belong to us or neighbors lying on its side on the sidewalk in front of our house, which immediately got our attention. As we walked toward the house, we noticed that my daughter’s bike was missing. We went back to look at the bike left behind and discovered it had a flat rear tire.

Our first assumption was that someone had a flat and borrowed my daughter’s bike (since the other bikes and ride-on toys were all still there–even my nicer mountain bike). We thought the owner of the flat tire bike might come back to claim it, and hoped they would also bring back my daughter’s bike. Just in case, we secured the stranger’s bike and brought my bike inside.

Here we are Wednesday, and my daughter’s bike is still missing. It is a purple and white 20″ cruiser, with fenders and foam tape wrapped around the handlebars, which was coming off. Unfortunately, I do not have a picture of it. The bike that was left here is a KHS FXT Sport, a blue mountain bike.

Unless someone comes forward, I suppose we will make a police report, which I was hoping would not be necessary, since we were hoping her bike was borrowed, and not stolen. Perhaps the bike that was left was also “borrowed,” and someone out there will be happy to know it is secure at our house.

• If you missed the Walmart meeting in Decatur Heights last night, here’s the play-by-play [Patch]
• Here’s the story of Decatur’s Christmas Tree.  Lighting tonight at 7pm! [LSOS]
• Man, this Melton’s story has some legs! [AJC]
• GPB to broadcast Emory’s popular Celtic Christmas Concert this year [Emory]
• When it rains, Lake Lanier gets fuller [AP]
• How to make an outside cat, an inside cat [Clairmont Heights Civic Assoc]
• New, strict pedestrian ordinance in Ann Arbor has drivers frothing [Atlantic Cities]

Photo of DHS Reunion at Walmart Meeting courtesy of Chris Billingsley