My name is Cindy Bledsoe, I am a fifth year Civil Engineering student. I am from a small town in Oconee County, Georgia, which is next to Athens, Georgia. Oconee County, being a rural community, is car-centric. I learned to drive on country roads where tractors are often the primary cause of traffic. However, I frequently used the Athens Transit bus system and UGA bus system while at UGA during my first two and a half years of college. This was mostly a pleasant experience, but it could also be frustrating as the buses were limited by the vehicle traffic. During the summer of 2015, I studied abroad in Paris, France to gain credits towards my Geography minor. We lived directly across from the Vaneau metro station in the 6th arrondissement. This was my first time living in an urban setting, and I used the Paris Metro almost daily. I was fascinated by the ease of living in a walkable city and the common use of public transit for daily activities. This incredible experience ultimately prompted my decision to transfer to Georgia Tech in January 2016, as I wanted to study transportation and city planning in the more urban setting of Atlanta. While living here and using MARTA, the Beltline, and other infrastructure has been valuable, I hope this course will give me an even deeper perspective on the potential of multimodal transportation in Atlanta. I hope to learn how to effectively apply the Dutch planning and design concepts in the more car-centric cities of the US. Finally, I hope to gain confidence in establishing a mentor relationship as I will soon graduate and start my career in the transportation industry.
790 Atlantic Drive NW, Atlanta, Georgia 30332