Closer Look: Council member Andre Dickens Gives the Latest on ATL DOT; From Self-Driving Shuttles to Solar Highways, The Role of Tech In Transit
October 29, 2019
Monday, Oct. 29, 2019 on “Closer Look with Rose Scott:”
Today on “Closer Look with Rose Scott,” we continue our deep-dive into Atlanta’s transit landscape with the week-long series, “Gridlocked: What’s Moving Atlanta?” Today’s edition of the program focuses on the City of Atlanta’s newly-formed Department of Transportation. Plus, from solar highways to autonomous shuttles, we discuss the role technology can play in attempting to solve the region’s transit challenges.
Rose Scott gives a news brief on a new CDC report analyzing deaths tied to the current outbreak of vaping-related illnesses.
And, in other news, Spelman College announced today that the college will create a chair of Queer Studies, with the help of an up to $2 million matching donation from philanthropist Jon Stryker.
Finally, former President Jimmy Carter will not teach Sunday school at his Plains church for the second weekend in a row, according to a Facebook post that Maranatha Baptist Church published late Monday evening.
Update: Maranatha Baptist Church posted an update on Facebook today saying Carter had changed his mind and said he felt well enough to teach.
01:48: Earlier this year during her State of the City Address, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced the city would create its own department of transportation. Atlanta City Council member and Chair of the City Transportation Committee Andre Dickens stops by the Closer Look studios to discuss the latest with ATL DOT and how the department can work with statewide transit agencies.
20:19: The City of Peachtree Corners has a new option for helping residents get around. It’s called Olli, and it’s a 3-D printed, driverless shuttle. The new technology is currently being tested on a 1.5 mile stretch of road along the Technology Park in Peachtree Corners. Today, we take a ride on Olli and have a conversation with Brian Johnson, city manager of Peachtree Corners, and assistant city manager Brandon Branham, about why officials are embracing this new technology.
41:37: We continue the conversation about how technology can help the region’s transit challenges with Allie Kelly, executive director of the Ray. As we heard on a previous edition of the program, the Ray is an 18-mile stretch of I-85 starting in LaGrange, Georgia that has been called “the highway of the future.” The roadway is a testing point for pavement solar cells and allows the highway’s surface to generate clean energy.
We continue the conversation about how technology can help the region’s transit challenges with Allie Kelly, executive director of The Ray. (Photo credit: Grace Walker)
“Closer Look” is produced by Candace Wheeler and Grace Walker. Joy Barge is a contributing producer.
