THURSDAY’S WEATHER-TRAFFIC: Cold showers to clear before Braves celebration Friday

Atlanta can look forward to sunshine and blue skies Friday when the city turns out in style to celebrate its World Series champions.

The weather Thursday won’t be quite as exultant, according to Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan. It will be cold and wet for much of the day, and cold and cloudy for the rest of it, he said.

“We should be able to clear these showers out well in time for the parade tomorrow,” Monahan said. “You’ll need a jacket, a sweatshirt — it’s going to be chilly along the parade route, but not as cold as today. We’re going to be in the 50s instead of the upper 40s.”

Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan expects temperatures in the mid-50s and sunshine along the parade route Friday.

Temperatures are in the 40s to start Thursday morning and won’t move much throughout the day, according to Channel 2. With no sunshine in the forecast, Atlanta is expected to reach a high of just 50 degrees.

Widespread rain is falling across North Georgia for the Thursday morning commute. While there are a couple of pockets of steadier rain, Monahan said the showers are mostly light.

“But definitely enough to make the roads slick in a few spots,” he said. “Drizzle and light rain to start the day.”

The region will stay cloudy and wet off and on through the morning, he said. Monahan expects improvement by lunchtime as showers begin to wrap up, making the way for a chilly and gray afternoon. Thursday is “definitely a day for inside plans,” he said.

By the time Braves fans descend on downtown Atlanta and Truist Park in Cobb County on Friday afternoon, there should be a big improvement in weather conditions. The parade is scheduled to begin at noon at the corner of Marietta and Peachtree streets and travel north up Peachtree to 10th Street. The second phase of the parade will then continue through Cobb County on Cobb Parkway, beginning at the corner of Riverwood Parkway and culminating at Circle 75 Parkway.

Several metro Atlanta school districts have cancelled classes Friday for logistical reasons, and to allow their students and staff to take part in the festivities. With major traffic delays expected at both ends of the parade route, authorities are encouraging Braves fans to take MARTA.

The dry, sunny conditions will carry over into the weekend, and it will stay cool, according to Channel 2. After a start in the 30s Sunday morning, temperatures are expected to rise into the mid-60s for a warmer finish to the weekend.

Atlanta's projected high is 50 degrees Thursday with a 70% chance of showers.

Expect extra traffic delays on the wet pavement Thursday morning. Multiple crashes have been reported as of 8 a.m. as the morning drive reaches its peak, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

The biggest backups are on the I-285 inner loop, where a crash has all lanes blocked at times at New Northside Drive. No injuries have been reported in the crash, which involved a single tractor-trailer, Sandy Springs authorities said.

A crash involving a single tractor-trailer has caused major delays on I-285 East at New Northside Drive for much of the Thursday morning commute.

A wrecker arrived at 7:45 to clean up the wrecked big rig, but there are big jams on both I-285 and I-75 as a result of the longstanding closure.

Commuters can take I-75 South to I-85 North as an alternate out of the northwest suburbs, the Traffic Center reported.