Atlanta Braves brass and Cobb County officials rolled out the second phase of their traffic plan to get commuters to, through, and from the SunTrust Park area. The first phase of the traffic plan’s highlights included later start times for Braves night games (7:30 p.m.) and the 14 entry/exit points 360 degrees around the complex. This next phase, announced Thursday at the SunTrust Park planning space on the 8th floor of a building across Circle 75 Parkway from the new stadium, has several more specific upsides.
The WSB Traffic Team’s Smilin’ Mark McKay and I attended the briefing and have a few takeaways. First, the parking will be plentiful. The Braves own or lease 14 lots in a circle around the property, accounting for roughly 11,000 spots. The official Braves lots at Turner Field only held 8,700 and SunTrust Park will hold roughly 10,000 less fans than The Ted did.
Cobb officials are urging private businesses that want to sell parking for games to start applying now with the county, so they can work them into the traffic plan. Factor in the businesses that have applied or may later and the number of available spaces within 15 minutes of the stadium balloons to over 30,000.
The Braves will offer a free shuttle to fans who park in spaces 15 minutes away. Officials also are in talks with other shuttle providers about how to usher in fans from other parts of metro Atlanta.
One of the biggest parts of this phase of the traffic plan is the Braves’ updated app. Built by MLB, this app will, among other things, have a Waze-powered section that will give fans directions to their exact parking lot where they purchased parking. The Braves say that each of their 14 official lots has its own address, making navigation much easier.
Dealing with traffic volume, though, is a major issue. Cobb DOT and Cobb PD have detailed 30 intersections on CobbCounty.org that they will focus their efforts upon on game days. Cobb Lt. J.D. Lorens notes the extra turn lanes being added on Cobb Parkway at Spring Road and the ability to “contra-flow” Circle 75 Parkway adjacent to the ballpark. This is where the opposite lane of travel is dedicated to the predominant traffic flow direction.
Cobb DOT Director Jim Wilgus says most road projects in the Cumberland area will be done in time for the start of the season, but that some were planned before the new stadium’s announcement and will last longer. Cobb and Georgia DOT will operate an on-site Traffic Management Center to monitor the area and a system of 70 adaptable traffic lights will help both cars and pedestrians (who will have bridges to cross roads more efficiently) move properly.
Uber also is partnering with the Braves and wants fans to use UberPOOL - Uber’s version of carpooling - and split the cost for a ride with more people. The Braves are creating a designated Uber load zone on Circle 75 Parkway for UberPOOL users or normal Uber users to load and unload safely and without disrupting too much traffic.
The best part of the entire transportation announcement was Uber’s announcing they will give legendary Braves usher Walter Banks free rides to and from SunTrust Park for the entire 2017 season. Banks’ knack for numbers means he probably will know exactly how much money Uber is saving him with that generous gift.
You can find much more on this intricate travel plan on BravesUpdate.com. There still is no doubt that the influx of extra people into I-75/I-285/Galleria/Cumberland area will create extra delays in an already gridlocked area. But the different projects and plans that both Cobb County and the Atlanta Braves are investing in — that they say will be ever-changing — will make strides in batting back the potential traffic armageddon.
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