WEATHER-TRAFFIC: Roads jammed in Cobb, DeKalb as evening commute picks up steam

A messy day on the roads continues, especially in Cobb and DeKalb counties.

I-75 North is slow from South Marietta Parkway to Chastain Road due to a crash, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center. The crash has been moved to the left shoulder.

The Perimeter in DeKalb is also recovering after a left lane was blocked on the outer loop by a stalled box truck at Flat Shoals Road, the Traffic Center reported.

There are also slowdowns in Rockdale County after a left lane of I-20 East was blocked near Sigman Road by a wreck, according to the Traffic Center.

The sky is blue and peppered with white clouds for the first time in a while. Much of the day was cloudy, overcast and rainy Sunday. North Georgia certainly needed the rain, but it did little to help drought conditions.

Even with some heavier showers, metro Atlanta picked up just a little over a tenth of an inch of rain over the weekend, according to Channel 2 Action News. That’s not much of a dent in a 1.5-inch deficit since the start of the month, contributing to a nearly 7.5-inch deficit this year.

“The good news is we do have more rain in the forecast,” Channel 2 meteorologist Eboni Deon said.

While Monday has been mostly dry, Tuesday has an 80% chance of widespread rain. Deon said moisture moving through the state will help to kick off heavy downpours through the afternoon and evening.

“We need a good, soaking, long rain, and that’s what it looks like we’re going to get with this next round that moves in Tuesday,” she said.

Some areas in metro Atlanta could pick up anywhere from an inch or two by Wednesday morning, with locally higher amounts up to 3 inches, according to Channel 2.

That’s Tuesday’s concern. For Monday, it’s been sunshine and higher temperatures.

The southwestern suburbs have a 10% chance of rain Monday, she said. Skies are mostly clear and rain-free from Atlanta northward.

The day started out cool with 50s in town and some 40s in the mountains. The city has quickly heated to 76 degrees, which is two degrees shy of the projected high.

“Overnight tonight is not quite as cool,” Deon said. “In fact, it’s going to be a little bit milder as clouds are going to build back in. We're down to 60 degrees in Atlanta for early Tuesday morning. We'll have some 50s showing up far north.”

On the other side of Tuesday’s showers, a cold front moving through the state Wednesday is expected to usher in a significant drop in temperatures. Atlanta could see morning lows in the 40s on Thursday morning, according to the latest forecast.

“It is going to bring us some drier, much cooler air,” Deon said. “We are talking a big cooldown.”

» For a detailed forecast, visit The Atlanta Journal-Constitution weather page.

» For updated traffic information, listen to News 95.5 and AM 750 WSB and follow @ajcwsbtraffic on Twitter. 

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