Over at The Decatur Minute, Catherine alerts us to a community workshop being held by the city this coming Thursday, September 9th from 6pm to 8pm at city hall to discuss the scheduled railroad crossing improvements at BOTH McDonough and Candler Street and the streetscape improvements along North McDonough.

You can read the details of the proposed changes to both the railroad intersections in the Streets section of Decatur’s Community Transportation Plan (pdf).

Here’s the summary statement of the problems addressed for South Candler to get those juices flowing…

The intersection is too complex and intimidating for most pedestrians and bicyclists. In particular, the “Path” on the northwest corner is circuitous in that three street crossings are required just to avoid the most obvious direct crossing of Trinity Place parallel to the railroad tracks. Some crossings do not meet the minimum requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. None of these are “complete streets” as they do not include adequate facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.

The left-turn movement across the railroad tracks from northbound Candler Street to westbound Howard Avenue is problematic and contributes to a vehicular crash history that is higher than at any other intersection in Decatur. Residents living south and southeast of downtown are not likely to walk across this intersection unless they must.