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Transit doesn't help either Hello DC 102 miles of transit and yet there traffic is a mess
But in a city like DC or NYC traffic is avoidable because of the transit options, while in Atlanta it is somewhat avoidable if you're going into the city. What I usually do is take the back roads and park at Perimeter Mall/Dunwoody Station and take the train from there.
There's not really any way to get rid of traffic in a fast-growing metro region of 6 million people where clearly-defined limitations to how much the road network can be expanded have been established by an increasingly road expansion-averse voting public.
The only thing that can be done is to create good ways to cope with the increasingly-heavy traffic, like investing in building and competently operating and maintaining a viable multimodal transportation network that consists of a high-functioning and high-performing mass transit system (that acts as a good alternative to the crowded road network) and a properly-maintained network of existing roads (where safety improvements are performed in a reasonable and timely manner as needed).
Can't get rid of it but there are ways you can make it better, some of which some have already been done (like the DOT roadside assistance efforts that are some of the best in the nation), mass transit, road improvements (the 400-85 connector piece being built) etc. But even metros much smaller than Atlanta like Seattle has horrific traffic too.
There is no way, people love their cars. You can have the biggest baddest transit system in the world and their will still be traffic, lets be realistic here.
One concept I like is multiple exits for the same roads especially in busy urban areas. You will find that a lot of traffic is caused by folks trying to exit at the last minute and if your exit is all the way to the right on the 7 lane northbound connector then you are just screwed. Another way we can help is by putting off ramps in the middle of the road as opposed to the right or left, which would make exiting on say again the 7 lane northbound connector easier. It would take getting use to.
Notice the black represent the off ramps for the connector. You can enter the freeway on the outside as normal and exit it from the middle.
When I think about it one of the main causes of traffic is the placement of certain exits. I wonder if a series of connector distributors on the left side of major corridors connector certain strategically placed exits could help.
Transit doesn't help either Hello DC 102 miles of transit and yet there traffic is a mess
The 102 miles only applies within and near the Beltway. D.C.'s commuter rail systems with the exception of the MARC Penn Line through Baltimore are just token systems that run in in the morning, and out in the evening so ridership isn't what it could be.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jsvh
Detroit doesn't have a problem with traffic...
But seriously. Start tolling roads to cover their cost. Congestion pricing is better. HOT lanes are a great example.
If you keep building free roads people will keep filling them up until the cost of their time in traffic is too high.
You keep spouting this ridiculous assertion without any references. Please start backing this up, and while you're at it, figure out why even in places like New York there aren't congestion pricing schemes in place.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigstick
There is no way, people love their cars. You can have the biggest baddest transit system in the world and their will still be traffic, lets be realistic here.
You claim people won't leave their cars, then ask to be realistic? Pot, meet kettle. People will switch to transit when it actually exists! You really should ride MARTA someday, or take a look at the MARTA parking lots like at Indian Creek and North Springs, and then claim that people won't ride transit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dpatt.marine1
One concept I like is multiple exits for the same roads especially in busy urban areas. You will find that a lot of traffic is caused by folks trying to exit at the last minute and if your exit is all the way to the right on the 7 lane northbound connector then you are just screwed. Another way we can help is by putting off ramps in the middle of the road as opposed to the right or left, which would make exiting on say again the 7 lane northbound connector easier. It would take getting use to.
Notice the black represent the off ramps for the connector. You can enter the freeway on the outside as normal and exit it from the middle.
Placing exits right in the middle of the road is just asking for an accident to happen. Plus, to keep the same through capacity, you'd have to widen the road by at least a lane on each side. Are you going to pay for that? The better solution is something I saw on the D.C. beltway, divide the highway in half, with the left lanes being "express" lanes that have no local exits, while the right lanes are for exiting/entering traffic. This would be particularly helpful on I-285 from GA-400 over to Chamblee Tucker to separate through traffic from the people getting off at and near Spaghetti Junction. This wouldn't require more than a 3 foot wide concrete median and shifting a few lanes slightly.
The 102 miles only applies within and near the Beltway. D.C.'s commuter rail systems with the exception of the MARC Penn Line through Baltimore are just token systems that run in in the morning, and out in the evening so ridership isn't what it could be.
You keep spouting this ridiculous assertion without any references. Please start backing this up, and while you're at it, figure out why even in places like New York there aren't congestion pricing schemes in place.
You claim people won't leave their cars, then ask to be realistic? Pot, meet kettle. People will switch to transit when it actually exists! You really should ride MARTA someday, or take a look at the MARTA parking lots like at Indian Creek and North Springs, and then claim that people won't ride transit.
Placing exits right in the middle of the road is just asking for an accident to happen. Plus, to keep the same through capacity, you'd have to widen the road by at least a lane on each side. Are you going to pay for that? The better solution is something I saw on the D.C. beltway, divide the highway in half, with the left lanes being "express" lanes that have no local exits, while the right lanes are for exiting/entering traffic. This would be particularly helpful on I-285 from GA-400 over to Chamblee Tucker to separate through traffic from the people getting off at and near Spaghetti Junction. This wouldn't require more than a 3 foot wide concrete median and shifting a few lanes slightly.
That could work as well, I'm just brainstorming here, because it is going to take a little creativity to fix Atlanta's traffic woes without some massive project such as the Northern Arc which many residents are already against.
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