“You're going to have a whole lot more customers that can scoot, ride or jog on their way to your business," said Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens at a BeltLine press conference last week.

It's great the mayor is expediting trail construction so that 17 miles will be completed, mostly along the Southside, by 2026 and the World Cup's visit to Atlanta. But the mayor's expectation around the newly paved portion of the trail serving as a launch point for bikes and scooters alone, or being merely a ‘boardwalk for businesses’ is off base.

The BeltLine has already shown its potential to change how people navigate the city. It is a major corridor that should include all types of accessible public transit. There's no evidence the Southside portion of the recreation trail will be used in the same way the Eastside Trail is being used.

Bikes and scooters (or micro-mobility) are great, but shouldn't be considered a replacement for mass transit. Indeed, we shouldn’t expect all parts of the BeltLine to develop similarly to the way the Eastside Trail has. The point of the BeltLine in the southeast and southwest quadrants of Atlanta may very well be the light rail connectivity that promises to circulate residents all over the city.

We must begin construction of BeltLine Rail, and build all 22 miles of BeltLine rail.

Mayor Andre Dickens' recent comments to subscription-accessed Atlanta Business Chronicle are linked here.