For Atlanta commuters the last three words that they ever want to hear from Captain Herb Emory are "traffic red alert." A traffic red alert in traffic jargon simply means that all lanes of an interstate are blocked, and will likely remain so for quite some time.
Last Monday morning we had a traffic red alert on I-285. All eastbound lanes were shutdown with a fatal crash near Chamblee Dunwoody Road. The crash happened around 4:30 a.m. and kept the freeway closed for four hours. Traffic obviously was a nightmare all morning long on I-285. But, because the crash had I-285 blocked for so long, and the backups were so severe, it also impacted the ride on Ga. 400 southbound.
While traffic red alerts cause delays no matter where they happen, experience has shown us that there are certain places where a traffic red alert causes the most backups. Here are the five areas where an interstate closure causes the most harm traffic-wise during the morning rush hour:
-- I-285 eastbound between Powers Ferry and Riverside Drive: a closure here, as history has shown, can cause monumental delays. Not only does I-285 become gridlocked, but the logjam also causes big delays on I-75 southbound. And, if it's out long enough even I-575 and I-20 commuters could feel the impact.
-- Downtown Connector southbound between 14th Street and North Avenue: "A major mess into midtown." With a closure on I-75/85 southbound any commuters heading from the northern suburbs into downtown should quiver. When the connector is closed southbound it impacts three major roads: I-75, I-85 and Ga 400. When this happens it is not uncommon the see delays all the way back to I-285 on all three roads.
--Downtown Connector northbound, north of I-20. When I-75/85 is shut down north of I-20, it not only causes major delays on the connector, but also on I-20 east and westbound heading into downtown. Lack of good alternates to northbound 75/85 doesn't help matters. When the northbound side of I-75/85 is closed commuters heading in from the southern suburbs often flee to I-285 and as a result there can be major delays on I-285 on both sides of town.
--I-75 southbound south of Highway 5 in Cobb County. Never a good spot for a crash. When a red alert occurs here both I-75 and I-575 feel the impact. The surface street alternates also quickly jam up causing delays for commuters from Cobb, Cherokee and Bartow counties.
--I-285 northbound north of Covington Highway in Dekalb County. When a red alert sounds here travelers on both I-285 and I-20 can be brought to tears. Outer loop delays on I-285 can stretch all the way back to I-675. I-20 drivers are jammed and they are unable to use Covington Highway as an alternate to I-20 because that road takes them to I-285 below the crash scene. The eastside jam also pushes commuters to the Downtown Connector which also gets very slow.
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