Warning: This story contains details about how much time we waste sitting in metro Atlanta traffic each day. Readers are advised against reading it while behind the wheel, sitting in whatever delay is ahead.
Here's the bottom line: Atlanta commuters don't have it as bad as some, according to the latest findings by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. We're not even in the top 10 for cities with the worst traffic delays. Those honors are saved for cities such as Washington D.C., New York, Boston, Seattle and Chicago.
Atlanta ranks No. 12 in the findings. And No. 12 is far from the top spot.
Still, morning commutes around the Atlanta area just aren’t fun. If you’re smart, you leave home in the wee morning hours. Sometimes even then, you’ll get stuck behind a crash, highway spill, construction project or something else you weren’t planning on. All you want to do is get to work, but you’re creeping at a snail’s pace.
At quitting time, it’s no better. Metro Atlantans again rush to their cars only to slowly creep home. It’s enough to make you want to move, but where? We love our city, just not its traffic.
According to the study’s findings, each metro Atlanta commuter wastes an average of 52 hours a year in traffic — more than two full days. But it’s more stressful and takes longer to commute in at least 20 other U.S. cities, according to the findings.
There’s enough data in the survey to keep you busy for hours, if you’d like to compare Atlanta to hundreds of other places.
Otherwise, get back to work. The rush hour (or hours actually) will be starting any minute.
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