The City of Peachtree Corners has picked up a significant statewide honor, marking its steady rise as a testing ground for intelligent transportation ideas. The recognition highlights years of behind-the-scenes work, volunteer leadership, and a clear bet on technology that changes how streets function.
Recognition rooted in years of involvement
The award, announced this week, comes from ITS Georgia, a group that represents engineers, planners, researchers, and public agencies focused on smarter mobility systems across the state.
It was formally presented to Greg Ramsey, the City’s Public Works Director, who has become a familiar face within the ITS Georgia community.
Ramsey currently serves as chair of the 2027 ITS Georgia Annual Meeting and also acts as the organization’s Student Chapter Liaison, a role that puts him in frequent contact with universities and early-career professionals.
That combination of senior leadership and student outreach helped frame the award as more than a one-off achievement.
City officials described it as recognition of sustained commitment, the kind that doesn’t always make headlines but quietly shapes outcomes.
A visible presence at major transportation events
Peachtree Corners’ involvement has not stayed local.
The City played a visible role during the 2025 ITS World Congress, one of the largest global gatherings focused on intelligent transportation systems. There, Peachtree Corners helped showcase real-world smart mobility projects that are already operating on its streets.
For many attendees, it was a chance to see technology move beyond slides and white papers.
Sensors embedded in roadways, connected vehicle corridors, and data-driven traffic management tools were presented as working examples, not pilot ideas stuck in planning mode.
One city official put it simply. “We’re not just talking about this stuff. We’re running it.”
That hands-on approach has become a defining feature of Peachtree Corners’ reputation within the ITS community.
The Curiosity Lab as a testing ground
Much of that reputation traces back to the Curiosity Lab, a city-backed innovation hub that has drawn attention far beyond Gwinnett County.
The Curiosity Lab serves as a controlled environment where companies, researchers, and public agencies can test transportation technologies in real conditions.
Connected vehicles interact with smart intersections. Traffic data flows in real time. New ideas get stressed, sometimes literally, before wider deployment.
The City has also opened its doors by hosting numerous ITS Georgia meetings at City Hall and the Curiosity Lab, giving professionals a firsthand look at how theory meets pavement.
Those meetings may sound routine, but they matter. Relationships get built. Ideas get refined. Students see possible career paths up close.
One sentence kept coming up in conversations around the award. Access matters.
Support for students and future professionals
A notable part of the recognition focused on Peachtree Corners’ support for student chapters linked to ITS Georgia.
Through Ramsey’s liaison role, the City has helped connect students with mentors, speakers, and real project exposure.
That effort spans multiple campuses across the region.
Students are invited into conversations usually reserved for seasoned engineers. They sit in on planning sessions. They ask blunt questions. Sometimes awkward ones.
And that’s the point.
By pulling students into the mix early, the City and ITS Georgia aim to strengthen the pipeline of transportation professionals at a time when the field is changing fast.
The award citation specifically mentioned this educational support as a key factor.
It was not framed as charity. It was framed as investment.
Why this matters beyond city limits
At first glance, an industry award might seem like inside baseball.
But intelligent transportation systems increasingly shape daily life, from how traffic signals respond to congestion to how emergency vehicles move through crowded corridors.
Cities that experiment early tend to influence standards later.
Peachtree Corners has leaned into that role, positioning itself as a place where ideas can be tested without years of red tape.
That posture has attracted private firms, academic partners, and visiting delegations curious about how smaller cities can punch above their weight in tech-heavy policy areas.
There is also a reputational effect.
When a city becomes known within professional circles, it gains leverage. It gets invited into pilot programs. It gets calls before decisions are finalized elsewhere.
That kind of soft influence is hard to measure, but it shows up over time.
Leadership as a long-term commitment
For Ramsey, the award reflects years of volunteer service layered on top of his day job running public works.
Those responsibilities do not always align neatly.
Public works deals with potholes, pipes, and deadlines. ITS organizations deal with frameworks, standards, and future-facing tools.
Balancing both requires patience and, frankly, stamina.
City leaders emphasized that the recognition belongs as much to staff as to any single individual.
Projects do not move without technicians, planners, and operations teams who translate ideas into functioning systems.
The award, in that sense, acts as a mirror. It reflects the cumulative effect of many small decisions made over time.
A city comfortable in the spotlight
Peachtree Corners has not shied away from being used as a case study.
It has welcomed scrutiny from researchers and visiting officials who want to see what works and what breaks.
That openness carries risk. Not every test succeeds. Not every metric looks good on paper.
Still, the City has kept showing up.
ITS Georgia’s recognition underscores that consistency.
As transportation systems become more connected and data-driven, cities that already have experience will likely help shape the next set of norms.
