WEATHER-TRAFFIC: Temps stuck in 40s as congestion increases

ATLANTA FORECAST

Tuesday: High: 49

Tuesday night: Low: 31

Wednesday: High: 46

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

Atlanta has gotten as warm as it’s expected to get at 49 degrees this afternoon, and it shouldn’t get much warmer until the weekend.

The sky remains clear, but the roads are quickly becoming cluttered, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

The worst delays are on I-20 East at Boulevard, where a crash blocks three left lanes and is causing heavy delays, the Traffic Center reported.

In Gwinnett County, a crash blocks the second left lane of I-85 North near Indian Trail Road, according to the Traffic Center.

A police chase ended on Ga. 92 near Woodstock Road after an alleged bank robbery, which is causing delays in the area, the Traffic Center reported. Police said the suspect is in custody.

There are also a few construction-related slow zones to contend with. In the city, construction blocks one northbound lane on Peachtree Street past 26th Street and on Peachtree Road at Pharr Road, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

And in Sandy Springs, a striping project continues on Peachtree Dunwoody Road near Telford Place. Lane closures are expected.

Temperatures have been dropping ever since a springlike weekend saw Atlanta tie a record high in the 70s, Channel 2 Action News reported. On Monday, Atlanta hit 67 degrees, 10 degrees above the average temperature for this time of year.

Much of North Georgia won’t get out of the 40s Tuesday, Channel 2 meteorologist Karen Minton said.

“It’s cold,” she said. “It’s going to get a lot colder this week as that nice arctic air is going to try to slip in here.”

The wind chill should make it feel even colder.

“You definitely don’t want to leave without your jacket because the wind is also going to pick up,” she said. “It will go up to 10-15 mph, maybe even to 20 mph for a short time this afternoon.”

By the evening, temperatures are expected to drop back into the 30s before North Georgia wakes up to numbers in the 20s and low 30s Wednesday morning, according to Channel 2. Minton said the 20-degree temperatures should be even more widespread Thursday.

“We'll be freezing pretty much everywhere,” she said.

It will be the same story until Friday, when clouds begin to develop ahead of what’s looking like another rainy weekend. This time, she said, that rain will be cold. It may even freeze.

MORE: Wintry mix? It's possible, but 'a lot could change.'

Minton said she is looking at the possibility for winter precipitation in the mountains Saturday, and some models show northeast metro Atlanta could get the same Sunday. That forecast is much less likely than the cold rain, she said.

“I don’t really believe it at this point,” she said. “It’s way too early. A lot could change.”