Home > Duluth.Talk > Archives > 2007 > June > 05 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USGwinnett County: You can check out any time you like but you can never leave
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My girlfriend is buying a house in Monroe, east of Winder near Athens. It’s practical for her - she teaches high school there, and she will pursue her doctorate at UGA starting in January. It’s about 40 miles, as the crow flies, from Duluth to Monroe.
I’m kind of dreading it. Why? Because it’s difficult to get there from here because of traffic. Pleasant Hill to 85 to 316 to Highway 11. Sounds simple, yes? Gwinnett is like the song “Hotel California.” You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.
I was talking about this the other day with a co-worker, Frank. Frank lives in Bethlehem, which is not far away at all from where my girlfriend will be moving. “It generally takes me about an hour to an hour and 15 minutes to get from my house to the office here in John’s Creek. It’s pretty smooth sailing until you start getting in Gwinnett. That’s when the backup starts.
“You start to learn the back roads pretty quick. I get off 316 right around Briscoe Field, Gwinnett County Airport. I take a couple of the back roads down to (State Road) 20. You can generally follow the traffic. From 20, I will cross over Peachtree Industrial and run along the eastern border of Forsyth County, taking James Burgess Road, then Old Atlanta Road. Do not take McGinnis Ferry under any circumstances. Do not take Pleasant Hill under any circumstances. Abbott’s Bridge is not going to be much better.”
“What do you think about Sugarloaf Parkway?” I asked.
“For me, traffic gets so backed up, I won’t even try to get to Sugarloaf Parkway,” Frank replied. “It’s not so much that Sugarloaf Parkway has too much traffic. It’s just that the traffic lights are so poorly timed. It’s the same problem with Pleasant Hill, I guess. Too many traffic lights, and if you hit one red, you hit them all red.
“Let’s face it: there’s just no easy way getting around Gwinnett County,” he said.
It’s good that Gwinnett County is growing. Traffic, I guess, is a necessary evil of growth. I just wish that our county commissioners did a better job of managing growth, instead of just adding buildings and then having stoplights as an afterthought.
Do you know any easy ways to get around Gwinnett County?
Permalink | Comments (29) | Categories: Bill Allen
Comments
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By Katie
June 6, 2007 5:51 AM | Link to this
How witty of you to use an Eagles tune. It’s Hotel California not Hotel Georgia or better yet Hotel Gwinnett—NEXT!!!
By EO
June 6, 2007 7:57 AM | Link to this
I am able to work from home 3 days a week, that is my solution. The Clean Air Campaign helped my company start a telework program. www.cleanaircampaign.com
By KA
June 6, 2007 7:58 AM | Link to this
Yes, I have plenty of back road shortcuts, which I am not going to share! My advice is to get a map and work out your own get arounds.
By KA
June 6, 2007 8:00 AM | Link to this
Yes, I have plenty of back road shortcuts, which I am not going to share! My advice is to get a map and work out your own get arounds.
By Charles
June 6, 2007 8:09 AM | Link to this
There is traffic everywhere. And since my job requires that I travel the whole metro, and state, I can say Gwinnett is still the best county to live in.
By Charles
June 6, 2007 8:11 AM | Link to this
There is traffic everywhere. And since my job requires that I travel the whole metro, and state, I can say Gwinnett is still the best county to live in.
By Frank
June 6, 2007 8:15 AM | Link to this
I was surprised that you didn’t mention the new bridge over I-85 that doesn’t connect with I-85 thus avoiding the backups that occur at I-85 entrance ramps during rush hours. This bridge was opened about a month ago for easier East-West travel. I think it is on Old Norcross Road but not certain about the name. One might try this when going from one side of Gwinnett to the other.
By J Jones
June 6, 2007 8:55 AM | Link to this
Helicopter.
By Jj
June 6, 2007 9:21 AM | Link to this
My commute is straight down Peachtree Industrial Blvd from Buford. I take it all the way to Duluth. Once in Duluth it takes 15 to 20 minutes to get from Rogers Bridge to Pleasanthill Road. WHY? Because the traffic lights are not timed in Duluth. You just get through one and have to stop and the next. It takes me longer to get through Duluth, than to get TO Duluth. Then I cut through Berkeley Lake, which is quite enjoyable. All the pretty homes, and the lake itself……and I’m usually travelling alone on those roads, very rarely see another car…..
Traffic is horrendous any time, any where in Gwinnett County. You can’t go anywhere without hitting some kind of traffic.
By will
June 6, 2007 9:44 AM | Link to this
Yes, I know of a shortcut, I live on one!, and would be delighted to see some serious radar gun activity here during the 6-9am 4-6pm hours.
The road is used as a high-speed commuter corridor to escape traffic lights and police presence at the nearest alternative.
Backing out of our narrow driveway can be extremely dicey, and is often met with New York style aggression, ie; horn blowing, tailgating.
Recently, a man screamed at my wife to get the eff off the road. This in front of her home, on a road where the homes are very close and small children are common.
True, our mistake for purchasing property on a dragstrip, but we’d love some traffic control and diversion on this shortcut.
By CBL
June 6, 2007 10:04 AM | Link to this
…just leave Gwinnett like I did. You can’t ride a bike, because you’ll become road kill. You can’t ride the bus, because it will be caught in the same traffic you could be sitting in in the comfort of your own car.
I moved to Atlanta and left my traffic problems in Gwinnett.
By Camille
June 6, 2007 10:15 AM | Link to this
Frank, I do believe that you are talking about the new bridge that was built on Old Norcross Road that just replaces the old one. It needed to be moved a little further south from where it originally was for whatever they are doing with the 316/I85 construction. That new bridge did not make anything easier, as I take it everyday going from Lawrenceville to Technology Park in Norcross. Whoever designed the lanes from that bridge to connect to Satellite Boulevard needs to be shot, as they made an already bad situation worse. An “easier east-west travel”, I just really don’t think so.
Also, don’t posters realize that there may be a delay before their post appears? If people would just be a little patient before making yet another post, they would see their post appear in just a couple of minutes or so.
By sprawlin'
June 6, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
You could do what I do and hitch a ride on Laura Mallory’s broomstick.
By mw
June 6, 2007 10:18 AM | Link to this
I agree with CBL, but not only did we get out of Gwinnett, we got out of ATL. After 40+ years of growing up with ATL, we love our new area. I forgot what it is like to NOT sit in traffic, wait for stoplights, etc. I do not miss living in the car. We have gained an average of 12 hours a week of our lives back. Our only regret is not getting out sooner, as we thought ATL was the place to be. Sometimes, the grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
By delois
June 6, 2007 11:01 AM | Link to this
My husband has 4 more years before he can retire and get out of Gwinnett and Georgia. We are looking at cities that are not on anybody’s “fastest growing” list so we can enjoy a slower pace of life. I commute from Larryville to the Perimeter and am sick of it. I just hope I can survive 4 more years without getting killed on the roads or shot by anybody from the gangs that are taking over Gwinnett county.
By CBL
June 6, 2007 11:01 AM | Link to this
The only disadvantage of moving from Gwinnett to Atlanta is that you must downsize since the price of housing is at least twice as much in-town. But going from large to small is fine with me. Less yard to mow, less stuff to worry about = more time to yourself.
Gwinnett still is great for raising a family, but once the kids are on their own (like I am now), it’s time to leave the large house in the swim+tennis community for something more manageable in an area that is more livable and conducive to your interests.
Traffic gridlock, vacant strip malls, Mexican restaurants, and doubling murder rates are not constitute a livable area that is conducive to my interests.
By LJ
June 6, 2007 11:48 AM | Link to this
Hi Bill, just a quick note - Monroe is not just “east of Winder”. Monroe is east and south of Winder. I live six miles east of Monroe right on Interstate 78 and I MEAN Interstate! We moved to our location 20 years ago and it was oh-so-peaceful. Ever since Wally World built their giant (and then expanded) distribution center two miles west of us the truck traffic has grown to almost unbearable proportions. A week ago Tuesday morning at 2:00 a.m. we had an 18-wheeler “lose it” in front of our house. He started by taking out our neighbor’s mailbox, thankfully horsed it back on the road at the top of a culvert thereby averting killing himself, then skittered across the road at a 90 degree angle coming to rest straddling the eastbound lanes. Had it not been for a dense growth of trees on that side of the road, he would have had to swim out of his truck because there is a large pond on the other side of the trees.
Highway 78 is NOT an interstate. For those who think they know the difference, let’s do a refresher course: State Highway = UNLIMITED access road (i.e. for those who cannot figure that one out…houses, businesses and many, many, many intersections.); Interstate Highway = LIMITED access road (i.e. over and underpasses instead of intersections, no driveways for homes or businesses, etc.).
After many, many years the State is finally putting up a nice stop light complete with large flashing warning lights.
The people who drive Interstate 78 are nothing short of maniacal at best. You just haven’t lived until some total idiot honks at you because you had the audacity to want to turn into your driveway. Abviously the fact that I start signaling and lightly pumping my brakes 4/10s of a mile from my driveway…and…we are the only two cars on a four-lane road, just means the fool believes he/she is the only person in existance. I’ve invited the Walton County Sheriff and the Georgia Highway Patrol (which thankfully re-located an office back to Monroe) to come sit in our driveway any ol’ time they want…I’ll even serve coffee, donuts, breakfast, lunch and/or dinner.
The new traffic light will have one of two possible effects. One - people will be more cautious and drive a bit slower until they clear the area or (and this is more likely) Two - people will ramp up their speed so they can “miss the light”.
As far as Gwinnett County goes, indeed the traffic is unbearable hence there are several people who are left scratching their heads over why the commissioner for District 3 absolutely, positively HATES the new commuter bus that leaves Snellville. We LOVE it. We actually get to work and home relaxed and on time most of the time.
One more thing, will Gwinnett County ever erect a traffic light at the top of the hill just past the QT on the east side of Snellville? I cannot believe that with the horrendous amount of traffic trying to cross the road or access 78 continually have to take their lives in their hands and usually wind up clogging the left turn lanes just trying to get onto the highway. Now the subdivision down the east side of that hill have had a light for years. The congestion and difficulty of ingress and egress from that subdivision is far easier to navigate. Go figure.
Traveling Highway 78 can get quite dicey from the time you leave I-285 until you get to Bogart (just outside Athens).
Hope your girlfriend enjoys her new home and the fact that she now does not have to commute. Monroe isn’t a bad town but I wouldn’t wander the streets at night…
By woodie
June 6, 2007 5:32 PM | Link to this
I know all about people “getting around the back roads” in Gwinnett. They are the reason it takes me 20 minutes to get to I-85. You guys are annoying. Stay off Gwinnett streets if you don’t work or live here. The expressway is the best bet. You are wasting everyones time and gas taking side roads you’ve got no business on. You create the traffic problems yourselves. It’s like all those people on the expressway passing and switching lanes. They create the very traffic they are trying to get around. Sort of like rats in a maze only they don’t know they are the stupid rats.
By LJ
June 7, 2007 12:47 PM | Link to this
Hey Woodie…I’ll bet you’ve taken plenty of “roads you’ve got no business on” haven’t ya. What’s with this “stay off Gwinnett streets if you don’t work or live here”? I see no signs reading - “Non-Gwinnetians not allowed and will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law if caught on this street!” posted anywhere.
The reason it takes you 20 minutes to get to I-85 is because Gwinnett County is being overpopulated by housing developments, which for some odd reason seems to attract those nasty little people who clog up YOUR street. Why don’t you just take your complaints to the developers (who could give a “ahem” a## about what YOU want…), or perhaps your commissioners.
Sometimes I wonder why Gwinnett County doesn’t just fence themselves in. You’re not THAT special.
By Publius
June 7, 2007 8:27 PM | Link to this
Traffic is not the biggest problem in Gwinnett. Crime is the biggest problem. How long will public safety be ignored?
By Deepsix
June 8, 2007 10:04 AM | Link to this
Traffic in Gwinnett is a mess, we’ll all agree to that. As an ‘old engineer’ I’m reminded that it takes longer to restart traffic than it does to stop it. Traffic light timing is terrible in Gwinnet and is made worse by the ‘on demand lights’ that are common on major roads and are never coordinated with overall traffic flow. Look at Peachtree Industrial between Pleasant Hill and SR120. The ‘demand’ lights at Kroger Plaza and Rivergreen Parkway totally screw-up traffic every day. I’m convinced that the people who do traffic light timing in Gwinnett are employees of road planning and road construction companies.
By Deepsix
June 8, 2007 10:05 AM | Link to this
Traffic in Gwinnett is a mess, we’ll all agree to that. As an ‘old engineer’ I’m reminded that it takes longer to restart traffic than it does to stop it. Traffic light timing is terrible in Gwinnet and is made worse by the ‘on demand lights’ that are common on major roads and are never coordinated with overall traffic flow. Look at Peachtree Industrial between Pleasant Hill and SR120. The ‘demand’ lights at Kroger Plaza and Rivergreen Parkway totally screw-up traffic every day. I’m convinced that the people who do traffic light timing in Gwinnett are employees of road planning and road construction companies.
By Anonymous
June 8, 2007 2:55 PM | Link to this
“It’s good that Gwinnett County is growing.”
False assumption right there. All conclusions based on that mistaken belief will, necessarily, be wrong.
By James
June 8, 2007 11:15 PM | Link to this
I think one of Gwinnett (and North Fulton and Forsyth)’s biggest problems is that there are no good east-west routes. All of them are twisting two-lane roads that clog up in a heart-beat. Bill’s friend Frank mentioned McGinnis Ferry and he’s right that it should be avoided (although I don’t like his alternative of James Burgess b/c it is a much more local road than McGinnis Ferry and a lot of houses and schools are located along Burgess). State Bridge used to be worse until it was widened. GA 120 (Abbot’s Bridge) is also horrible. The Gwinnett Commission needs to take a serious look at expanding these east-west routes before the traffic gets even worse.
By Bill Allen
June 9, 2007 12:12 PM | Link to this
Great insights by Deepsix and by James. What frustrates me most is that these observations seem so painfully obvious to us and so casually oblivious to the people who are paid to observe and address them. It’s frustrating. How can people whose job it is to plan on growth and be mindful of all their constituents conclude that the simplest and best answer is to simply put up more buildings while neglecting access to them?
By BurbHater
June 11, 2007 5:54 PM | Link to this
Bill, because about 20 years ago the people who were paid to observe and address the problems advanced the idea of extending MARTA into your little kingdom. Y’all said no, for fear that “those people” would disturb you. Now, with wall to wall hispanics (guess “those people” showed up anyhow), traffic, crime, and plunging property values, Gwinnett is stuck in its own mess.
BTW, I live at the other end of the Stone Mountain freeway, if you think people are nasty along 78 in Gwinnett, they’re twice as bad when they get here. And yeah, 78 is a freeway, with limited access. Built entirely for the benefit of entitled Burbites like Woodie (you stay off of my roads, I’ll stay off yours—deal? Didn’t think so, hayseed) who are now clogging it to a standstill.
What did you people expect?
By Pam
June 11, 2007 7:55 PM | Link to this
If we get all the illegal aliens (which by the way do not have tags or insurance) our roads would not be so bad.
By HKJ
June 12, 2007 11:34 AM | Link to this
….thank you for reminding me of one of MANY reasons we left Gwinnett more than three years ago…..while living in Snellville, it took me 45 minutes to go 7 miles to the Super Wal-mart on 124; sometimes longer than that. Today, our WalMart is 14 miles away from our life on a dirt road in east central Georgia and it takes me 20 minutes, tops. There are many days, we never see a car - and no we are not retired and still have children at home we are raising. It’s about choice; you choose to live w/it or make a choice to do something about it.
http://www.southofthegnatline.com
By AR
June 18, 2007 3:35 PM | Link to this
I live in the City of Duluth and drive to Dunwoody every day. Peachtree Industrial is my only back way and it’s never good! There are no easy ways in Gwinnett. We have to also remember that a lot of people from Forsyth and Fulton clog up Peachtree Industrial cutting through. Why can’t they take 400 and leave Peachtree Industrial to we Gwinnetians!