One year after bridge collapse, cars still jam neighborhood

Construction workers and firefighters survey a section of an overpass that collapsed from a large fire on Interstate 85 in Atlanta, Friday, March 31, 2017. Many commuters in some of Atlanta's densely populated northern suburbs will have to find alternate routes or ride public transit for the foreseeable future after a massive fire caused a bridge on Interstate 85 to collapse Thursday, completely shutting down the heavily traveled highway. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

By Associated Press March 30, 2018 1 min read

ATLANTA (AP) – One year after a major interstate bridge collapsed in metro Atlanta, nearby residents are complaining that drivers still use their neighborhood as a cut-through – even though the bridge was repaired about six weeks after the catastrophe.

Shortly after the Interstate 85 bridge came down March 30, 2017, commuters had to find new ways to get around.

WSB-TV reports that many motorists discovered Woodland Hills Drive. Neighbors say it hasn’t been the same since.

Homeowner Susan Kramer says she thinks traffic has tripled on her street since the bridge collapse and hasn’t let up, despite I-85 reopening by mid-May. Vernon Dawson says cars frequently speed through the neighborhood. The Woodland Hills Neighborhood Association wants speed bumps installed to slow them down.