Driving Down/Atlanta Traffic on 75 Southbound

[buckethead501]

Hello All,
Suddenly planning an unexpected short trip in September (Yay!)...we will be driving down, first time in over 7 years that we will be driving. It looks like we will be hitting the Atlanta area on 75 around the morning rush hour on a Thursday morning. I have always shot straight through instead of taking the by-pass because it was faster no matter the time of day. Does anyone know if that is still the case? Understandably, crashes and stalled vehicles can throw things off, but in general is straight through still faster coming from the north?
Thanks!!

[brad192]

As with any big city commute, timing is everything. I live near Detroit & have to commute in and out every workday, and have found that even 15 minutes can make a world of difference. If you're going to hit Atlanta between 7 & 8AM, you'll probably be in a traffic mess. Before 7 and after 8 you'll be better off. Here's an idea, if you're there during the worst part of it, why not stop just North of the city and have a nice breakfast? Ya gotta eat anyway, and it'll burn up a good hour doing so & allow all the congestion and madness to subside. After about 8:30 you should be able to shoot right thru!

[Itchy]

When ever we go down and that has been for many years now we go right down the middle or I-75. Since you are with your family be sure to take the HOV lane. It moves better. Last few years we have gone thru on a Saturday and we still find traffic issues till we get to the HOV lanes. The worst traffic we had to contend with was at 3 pm Friday on labor day weekend. What a mess.

Hope this helps..

[joonyer]

Wewe live in Georgia and drive through Atlanta a lot throughout the year. Generally speaking, driving through downtown on the connector (I-75/85) is quicker than taking I-285 around the city, because traffic is just as heavy on 285 and there are fewer lanes. Plus, there is no HOV lane on 285, so that gives an advantage to the connector when you have 2 or more people in the car. Traffic can be very heavy at rush hour, but it usually keeps moving unless there is an accident. I suggest using Google Maps, Waze, or a similar phone app, that will keep you up to date is there are any accidents closing lanes, etc.

[busterthebronco]

We live in Atlanta and I'll argue that taking 285 "west" around downtown is a safer bet. Having said that, if you are going straight through after about 9:00pm or before 7:00 am it might be clear to stay on 75. 285 around ATL in the particular direction you're going is better. now be careful, DO NOT get on the wrong ramp! 285 "East" from 75 is a huge mess! The ramps are odd too, the right hand fork actually ends up going left, or east, and the left hand fork goes right, or west. Its counter intuitive. they cris-cross after they split. Its an evil design created by evil DOT engineers!

[buckethead501]

Thanks everyone. We are staying just north of Chattanooga before heading south. We are used to Chicago traffic but I was just wondering which of the two was quicker on a typical weekday morning. Thinking we might try straight through and hope for the best!!!