Tractor trailers are driving up safety concerns across Atlanta as drivers take short-cuts through neighborhoods, but the Atlanta Police Department said there's not much they can do about it.
In many metro Atlanta neighborhoods, it’s clear some truck drivers are blatantly ignoring signs stating they cannot pass through. Others said it’s their GPS taking them the wrong way. Whatever the issue, some neighbors worry the next bad turn might take out more than just a street sign.
“Somebody's gone get hurt, somebody's gone get killed," said Joann, who lives in the neighborhood.
One 18-wheeler tried squeezing its way through the narrow streets of her northwest Atlanta neighborhood, but by the time it stopped, a couple of street signs and part of Michael and Donna Russell's yard were gone.
They said it was very scary, but what’s scarier is that it wasn’t the first time that had happened.
“We've had our sign at the front of the neighborhood taken out last year and also behind our house,” Donna said.
And this isn’t an isolated incident.
“I've seen trees that have been completely uprooted. Fire hydrants. My signs are still down and it's been three weeks,” Donna said.
Joann told 11Alive when the semi-trucks drive through, her entire house rattles.
"Our homes and our families are in jeopardy," Joann said.
This is why signs banning large trucks went up in the first place around the city.
“I think it’s really concerning that we can’t get people to look at signs and stay out of the neighborhood," said Aaron, another neighbor.
“I don't see any enforcement at all,” Donna said. “Even when there's police around, there's nothing being done about it.”
Brittany who also lives in the neighborhood spoke to police about the truck issue.
“What they said is, they cannot enforce the law simply because there's a sign,” Brittany said. “It makes me upset because why set rules that they're not supposed to follow?”
The problem is that many of the signs require police to measure the weight and size of trucks cutting through. Atlanta police said officers don't have the ability to do that, and the few tickets they do write end up getting thrown out of court because of it.
“There’s been probably tens-of-thousands of dollars of damages to people’s property – city property – as far as street signs go, and it needs to be addressed,” Councilman Dustin Hillis said.
Hillis said city leaders changed the ordinance last year, but the changes didn’t address the problem. He’s now organizing another review of the code to drive out the issue once and for all.
Whatever needs to be done, needs to be done,” Hillis said.
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