Evening commute amplifies traffic troubles ahead of frigid night

ATLANTA FORECAST

Tuesday: High: 44

Tuesday night: Low: 23

Wednesday: High: 46

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

Fulton County’s surface streets have been plagued by roadwork Tuesday, and with the evening commute in full swing, other areas also have traffic problems.

In the southern part of the county, Fairburn Road is shut down south of Cascade Road, where crews repaired a massive water main break.

Two right lanes of I-85 South before Senoia Road is blocked because of a wreck, according to the WSB 24-hour Traffic Center.

A right lane of I-20 West near Panola Road is also blocked by a crash, according to the Traffic Center.

It was cold Monday, and that trend continued Tuesday morning, with the coldest March air in two years.

Temperatures started in the upper 20s north of Atlanta, and it took the city several hours after daybreak to warm above freezing. While temps are in the low 40s now, Channel 2 Action News meteorologist Brian Monahan said a northwest breeze blowing 10 to 20 mph is making those 40s feel like 30s.

There were a few snow flurries reported in spots across North Georgia overnight. Those have long passed, Monahan said, making way for clear skies and lots of sunshine.

Before Tuesday, Atlanta had not experienced freezing temps since Jan. 31. While it’s cold, it’s not record cold, Monahan said.

“The record low is 10 degrees this morning,” which was set in 1960, Monahan said. “We’re nowhere close to that, but it is going to be our coldest March morning in a couple of years.”

The entire region was under a freeze warning through 11 a.m. While the warning is no longer in effect for the warmest part of the day, the National Weather Service has scheduled it to resume at 6 p.m. and last through Wednesday morning, when it could be even colder.

“Tonight, high pressure moves in, and that’s going to give us an even colder start (Wednesday) morning,” Monahan said. “I think we're going to see some teens first thing tomorrow morning in the North Georgia mountains.”

Atlanta could see a low of 23 degrees, which would make Wednesday the coldest morning in March since 2009, according to Channel 2. In preparation, the city is opening a warming center at 7 p.m. at the Old Adamsville Recreation Center at 3404 Delmar Lane, which will remain open until Wednesday morning.

Subfreezing morning lows are forecast through Thursday, but things are looking up for the weekend, Monahan said.

“The good thing about spring is we warm up quickly,” he said. “By the end of the week, we're going to be back into the 60s for highs for Friday.”

With the weekend warmup, a chance of rain and a few storms return. There is some potential for significant severe weather Saturday to the west and over parts of South Georgia, Monahan said.

“That risk drops some as it moves into North Georgia, but there is a storm risk for us Saturday night, Sunday morning,” he said on Twitter.