Jumpers in Atlanta

I don't know if this is just an Atlanta phenomenon or if this happens in most big cities, but periodically someone will stand on an overpass and threaten to jump into rush hour traffic. It has happened several times over the last few years and happened again this week on the downtown connector. It got so frequent at one point that the DOT started putting chain link fences on all the overpasses to prevent folks from climbing up there. I don't know if the state has finished this project, but I've seen lots of overpasses with the new fencing.

When it happens, of course, they have to take the threat seriously and stop traffic. The potential jumper is not only endangering himself, but also those who are passing underneath. Sometimes it goes on for hours as someone in an official capacity tries to reason with the person, so you can imagine how thrilled the commuters are when this happens. The affected highway becomes a virtual parking lot. And if you've ever had to endure Atlanta's rush-hour traffic, you can probably imagine how maddening a senseless, unscheduled delay like this can be. When this happens, it's not unusual for folks to yell, "Jump!!". Or they will start calling out for some rubber (or real) bullets or a fire hose to bring about some type of resolution. They're essentially held hostage by some person they don't know and they, understandably, are not happy about it.

I honestly don't know if jumpers are really attempting suicide, if they are crying for help, or if they are just starved for attention. I guess it could be all three, but I imagine that it's usually a cry for help or attention coupled with (or resulting from) some type of mental defect. I just don't think that it's a real suicide attempt in most cases. If someone wanted to commit suicide, they could do it without holding 300,000 people and their families hostage. These folks want to be seen and listened to, but we just don't have the time to cater to every fringe person who insists on crying for help by holding a city hostage.

What is the solution? The fences help, but they're obviously not foolproof. The state needs to come up with something more comprehensive. Maybe rubber bullets for all policemen (just in case). Or tranquilizer darts. Or a second, electric fence outside of the first one. Or tear gas or laughing gas. I don't know. I do know, however, that someone needs to put on their thinking caps and put a solution in place that will solve this once and for all.