When it comes to things like decreased traffic volumes on roadways, Peachtree City during the statewide shelter at home order from COVID-19 is like other cities in Fayette County.
There is an overall decrease in local traffic and there are no rush hours, Peachtree City Police Department spokesman Chris Hyatt said on Monday, adding that the decrease in vehicular traffic is being accompanied by fewer roadway collisions.
Hyatt’s assessment of decreased vehicular travel is clearly evidenced by most anyone on city streets and highways during the days of COVID-19, both from Gov. Brian Kemp’s shelter at home order and with so many businesses closed or scaled back, either by order or voluntarily.
Hyatt said officers have found one or two businesses that should have been closed but were not. Officers notified the businesses that they were to be closed, which was sufficient, he said.
The city’s big box stores are doing a good job of controlling customer flow, Hyatt added.
For the most part, traffic moving through the intersection of Ga. highways 54 and 74, including during rush hour times is, at least for the time being, like taking a step back in time when many fewer vehicles were customarily on the road.
Something else evidenced during the days of sheltering at home is the number of dispatched calls that result in an officer response, with Hyatt noting that the number of those calls is down.
When it comes to the city’s cart paths, Hyatt said patrols are up significantly. With two to three officers patrolling the paths each day, officers are logging 10,000 minutes of path patrol each week, Hyatt said.
Hyatt said the majority of people on the paths are complying with social distancing, though there have been a couple of times when officers intervened and asked people to keep moving.
All things considered, and looking at the city as a whole, Hyatt said the vast majority of residents are being receptive to the current conditions that came with COVID-19.
