Atlanta: through or bypass??

[jpping45]

I have been driving from Wi to Ft Myers area for about 30 years every March. I have always driven through downtown in I-75, and I always look at and think about the bypass. Is the bypass easier, shorter, or not worth it. I am pulling a 27' travel trailer. Thanks, Jim from Oshkosh.

[Our Time]

I only took the by-pass one time. Trucks must use the by-pass so it is almost all trucks. For me, I don't like not being able to see a few vehicles in front of me. So we never take the by-pass. Going straight through is not bad unless you hit it at rush hour, then the by-pass is loaded also.

[blackf3504dr]

We do the same as Our Time and go straight through on I75. I don't usually take the by pass in any city.

[thelastplace]

I've LIVED north Atlanta for 35 years and I have never taken the by-pass to go anywhere. If you are going to go thru, make sure there are two of you in the tow vehicle and use the HOV lane. I drive a 32 foot class A pulling a car and always use the HOV. Only at the worst times (accident) is it a bad choice. Besides, the by-pass is about 20 miles farther and when gas mileage is low and the cost of gas (or diesel) is high, why would you want to go farther. My father-in-law lives in FL and just by-passes the entire state when he goes to OH.

[speed racer]

The Bypass is longer and has more traffic. I took the Bypass once and will never do it again. Now that I am retired I bypass the whole state when I can. The roads are not that good with all the construction that has been going on for the last twenty years and the speed traps are at every construction zone eaven if they are not working there like on the wekends.

[doc]

There is construction going on north of 285 on 75. You should be OK even with that. Try to time you trip so that you go through after 9:30 AM or so and before 3:00 PM. Saturdays are fine most of the day and Sundays are great all day.
Like others have said, it is easier going straight through - especially on 75. Trucks can be a bit of a pain on the loop. Be careful with the HOV lane on the northside of town. We had a team bus run up an exit and crash when the ramp deadended at the overpass. Several were killed and injured.

[scenic route]

Agree with those who take I-75 straight through ATL. 285 can be just as congested as I-75 and both should be avoided (like the plague) during the evening rush...9 to 10:30 AM can still be heavy, but it's your best bet. As to using the HOV lane, I wouldn't do it unless you plan on driving 10mgh over the speed limit. I've experience some road rage driving 5mph over from some drivers wanting to go faster...Atlanta is a different animal, you just never know what you'll run into.

I loved living there for 11 years and met some of the nicest people you could ever meet, BUT, the traffic can be horrendous and was the principle cause of moving out of the area. Bob

[Lorna]

To miss Atlanta: we do US441 on the East side (Cornelia to Macon) and On the West side we have run Calhoun to Columbus to Cordele(I-75 Exit 101) (SR53/US27/I-185/US280) . We have only run the west side up and back once. We were living in Cordele and one of my favourite bands (that never tours) was playing in Chattanooga at Riverbend Fest. It was faster to run that route than drive the Class C thru Atlanta. US441 (much of it 4 lanes), we ran all the time from Cordele GA to Franklin NC. Mileage wise it was longer but time wise, I saved an hour over driving Atlanta (either thru or on the bypasses). Driving the Primary/secondary roads is far more relaxing that driving on the interstate. We have found out times are similar even though we seem to be driving "out of our way". You would be surprised at the numbers of semi's that are back running on the primary roads. In the late 60's/early 70's, my parents used to drive Hwy 441 from FL to NC and back, 3 to 5 times a year. Then they decided they could make better time on the interstate. To be honest, that only worked until the traffic in Atlanta got so bad and they stated widening the roads. It was always a 12 to 14 hour trip... except the one year my dad & I ran it and we did it in less than 10 hours driveway to driveway.... only stopped for gas. I refuse to travel like that now that I am an adult and I can make the rules! I do think the interstates often causes us to make worse time than the Primary roads, even though the primary roads run you thru a pile of tiny towns. Once you get near a big city, the normal city traffic slows you down so much and if there is a wreck, it seems to take more time because there is often a secondary wreck. Driving the interstates just wears me out. Primary roads do not.

BTW, GA Vet's State Park on US280 on west side of Cordele is a great state park.

Invest in a good road atlas and look for potential alternative routes. The US primary highways are a great way to go. I use the Michelin Road Atlas. Go to bookstore and look at them. open them up and look at the maps. Get something that you can see the primary and secondary roads without needing a magnifying glass. Look at the map legend to see how a primary road, secondary road and multilane divided highway is designated. Then look at the various maps to see how easy it is to read those roads. so many maps today seem to make it easy to red the interstate roads and don't make their maps big enough (or detailed enough) to show the other roads.

[JMonroe]

The last time we went through Atlanta the GPS routed us directly through, not on the bypass, and we hit at rush hour! (bad planning) It was funny though. Traffic got increasingly heavier as we approached the bypass, almost everyone else took the bypass, we all but had the freeway to ourselves! That is, until we hit the folks merging back off the bypass on the other side, then things bogged down. With the GPS telling me which lane to be in, it was probably the least stressful big city pass through I'd ever experienced.

Now, lets talk about Chicago...

[blackf3504dr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JMonroe Now, lets talk about Chicago...

I use to run Chicago at least a couple times a week for the company I drove for.
Rush hour in Chicago is anything but..... It drags along, stop and go no matter if you're on the Stevenson, Darn Ryan, Eisenhower or the Ford... The toll ways run a little better but cost you.... I tried to get to my stop before the rush and catch a nap.

[AL]

Hi All,

Hey jpping45,

Not sure why I am even adding my 2 cents worth, but I am, LOL!! Like all the others have said just stay straight on I-75 forget the bypass, and of course do your best to not be in any city area at rush hour,LOL!!! Have a great trip!!

Remember all: Live, Laugh, & Enjoy!!!

[Chickadee]

Jim:

Yup...straight through! Wouldn't recommend the by-pass. We've found best travel through is on a Sunday if possible but definitely not during rush hours.

Steve & Lynette

[W9WLS]

We try to time our run through ATL. for between midnight and 04:00 A.M. .
I prefer to drive at night anyway and the ATL. run is less congested during those hours.
Have been making that run several years now twice a summer and like it that way, can see construction zones well in advance and accidents also, Those GSP strobes show up for a long way off.

[Dick & Pat]

Living in Iowa, we are blessed with not even having to consider Atlanta....sympathy to those who do Memphis & Birmingham are the only major cites for us enroute to Florida.