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When I see I-85 is flogged on google Maps and the connector is only barely budging, if I'm coming from someplace like Fayetteville, McDonough, Peachtree City, or any suburb in southern Atlanta... sometimes I will take I-85 into the connector and use the HOV lane (I have a passenger with me) and use the left hand exit for Memorial Drive which USUALLY lets me off RIGHT before the highway comes to a crawl during evening Rush Hour.
That puts you on Pryor Street and you can continue North a few blocks before reaching Decatur St. Hang a right and follow Decatur St over some rough potholes but fairly predictable traffic into Downtown Decatur and hang a left onto Commerce St which belts around Downtown Decatur, hang another left onto Church St and about 2 miles later you are merged onto U.S. 78 right before it becomes Stone Mountain Freeway. USUALLY, Stone Mountain Freeway is moving during Rush Hour until you get to Hugh Howell Rd, although sometimes you'll get lucky and its moving all the way through East Park Place.
You have two choices depending on traffic...
A.) Get off at Hugh Howell and at the VERY first light, make a right turn (fun fact: this will eventually intersect Lawrenceville Highway and become Beaver Ruin Rd.), and at the VERY NEXT LIGHT, make another right - This is Five Forks Trickum Rd, takes you straight into Downtown Lawrenceville -- Used to be fairly predictable but construction has made it fairly rough lately.
B.) Continue on U.S. 78 East to either Hewatt Rd, Highpoint Rd, or Scenic Highway... all three with some coordination will lead you toward Lawrenceville with Scenic Highway being the easiest but also most congested.
Sometimes I go this way versus sitting on I-85.
I don't take I-285 because it backs up between I-675 and U.S. 78 usually. And going the other way around it backs up at I-20 and also I-75 and then from GA-400 to I-85.
When I see I-85 is flogged on google Maps and the connector is only barely budging, if I'm coming from someplace like Fayetteville, McDonough, Peachtree City, or any suburb in southern Atlanta... sometimes I will take I-85 into the connector and use the HOV lane (I have a passenger with me) and use the left hand exit for Memorial Drive which USUALLY lets me off RIGHT before the highway comes to a crawl during evening Rush Hour.
That puts you on Pryor Street and you can continue North a few blocks before reaching Decatur St. Hang a right and follow Decatur St over some rough potholes but fairly predictable traffic into Downtown Decatur and hang a left onto Commerce St which belts around Downtown Decatur, hang another left onto Church St and about 2 miles later you are merged onto U.S. 78 right before it becomes Stone Mountain Freeway. USUALLY, Stone Mountain Freeway is moving during Rush Hour until you get to Hugh Howell Rd, although sometimes you'll get lucky and its moving all the way through East Park Place.
You have two choices depending on traffic...
A.) Get off at Hugh Howell and at the VERY first light, make a right turn (fun fact: this will eventually intersect Lawrenceville Highway and become Beaver Ruin Rd.), and at the VERY NEXT LIGHT, make another right - This is Five Forks Trickum Rd, takes you straight into Downtown Lawrenceville -- Used to be fairly predictable but construction has made it fairly rough lately.
B.) Continue on U.S. 78 East to either Hewatt Rd, Highpoint Rd, or Scenic Highway... all three with some coordination will lead you toward Lawrenceville with Scenic Highway being the easiest but also most congested.
Sometimes I go this way versus sitting on I-85.
This sounds like a good alternative to me.
Although, I would probably avoid US 78 east to GA 124 through the north side of Snellville (because of the often extremely heavy traffic congestion along that stretch of GA 124 between US 78 and Sugarloaf Parkway) and just use Five Forks Trickum Road between Stone Mountain and Lawrenceville because it is a much more direct route between Downtown Lawrenceville and the south side of Atlanta.
Better yet... If one is traveling between OTP Southern Crescent suburban areas like Coweta, Fayette, Henry and the OTP or ATP portion of Clayton and South Fulton counties, using the southern and eastern portions of the I-285 Perimeter likely is a much better and much more direct alternative to using routes like I-85, Decatur St, DeKalb Ave, etc, through the city.
Unless one absolutely has to stop at a location inside of the Perimeter first before going to Downtown Lawrenceville from the south side suburbs, I-675 northbound to I-285 eastbound and northbound to US 78 (Stone Mountain Freeway) eastbound to Hugh Howell to (Lilburn-Stone Mountain Rd to Old Stone Mountain Rd to) Five Forks Trickum Road is an excellent route to use when traveling between Henry County and Downtown Lawrenceville.
Honestly when I am commuting around Atlanta Metro, my car has Android Auto with google maps, also my 99 Z28 has a literal android built into the car... I feel like a pilot or some sort of navigator going through my maps whenever I come up to a stop light checking traffic on the route Im going or in the general direction I'm going, checking to see if I-285 is clear, if the connector is clear, or if they're both backed up... which one is better (and believe it or not the Connector will typically beat the top end of I-285 if trying to get to the other side of town.) but I am just constantly looking for alternative routes in my maps as I'm driving during rush hour.. otherwise.. I typically do my best to avoid driving during heavy commute hours.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll
Unless one absolutely has to stop at a location inside of the Perimeter first before going to Downtown Lawrenceville from the south side suburbs, I-675 northbound to I-285 eastbound and northbound to US 78 (Stone Mountain Freeway) eastbound to Hugh Howell to (Lilburn-Stone Mountain Rd to Old Stone Mountain Rd to) Five Forks Trickum Road is an excellent route to use when traveling between Henry County and Downtown Lawrenceville.
I-285 Eastbound on the south side has become massacred with traffic between I-675 and I-20 and sometimes as far north as U.S. 78.
I wish they would build a more efficient stack at that interchange (I-285 and I-20, although U.S. 78 and I-285 seriously needs to be redesigned too.) It just seems way out dated for the traffic it handles, another thing I wish they would hurry up and do is finish that interchange between Flatshoals Rd and I-285... ...it seems like they should have long been finished with that.
I live just inside Gwinnett County along Lilburn-Stone Mountain and take that part of route frequently. I travel to the airport the most.
I use google maps to gauge traffic, but most of the time I stick to I-285 across the southern and eastern arcs to get to US78.
One idea.... If US78 gets thick, I often get off at Memorial Dr. The lights are better timed/synchronized from how they use to be and it joins US78 straight into the exit only lane for Hugh Howell.
Memorial Dr on that stretch has no capacity problems, it is just a matter if it is worth going 45mph over a shorter stretch and getting stopped by 2-3 lights.
If you take the intown/85 route.... You can also consider going East on I-20, exit at Maynard Terrace and you can turn onto Memorial Drive and take that east.
Honestly when I am commuting around Atlanta Metro, my car has Android Auto with google maps, also my 99 Z28 has a literal android built into the car... I feel like a pilot or some sort of navigator going through my maps whenever I come up to a stop light checking traffic on the route Im going or in the general direction I'm going, checking to see if I-285 is clear, if the connector is clear, or if they're both backed up... which one is better (and believe it or not the Connector will typically beat the top end of I-285 if trying to get to the other side of town.) but I am just constantly looking for alternative routes in my maps as I'm driving during rush hour.. otherwise.. I typically do my best to avoid driving during heavy commute hours.
I-285 Eastbound on the south side has become massacred with traffic between I-675 and I-20 and sometimes as far north as U.S. 78.
I wish they would build a more efficient stack at that interchange (I-285 and I-20, although U.S. 78 and I-285 seriously needs to be redesigned too.) It just seems way out dated for the traffic it handles, another thing I wish they would hurry up and do is finish that interchange between Flatshoals Rd and I-285... ...it seems like they should have long been finished with that.
Trying to drive as little as possible during rush hours and peak hours is not a bad idea if one has the option of doing so, which unfortunately many (if not most) people don't.
The worst hours for that I-285 eastbound and northbound route around the southern and eastern parts of the Perimeter is during morning rush hour when traffic on I-285 northbound is heavy north of the I-20 interchange with Southside commuters heading to jobs in the major employment centers of Northeast metro Atlanta.
During afternoon/evening rush hour, that I-285 eastbound and northbound route around the southern and western legs of the Perimeter is largely like a reverse-commute, particularly when one gets north of the I-285/I-20 East interchange.
...Which the current configuration of that I-285/I-20 East interchange (which was constructed back during the then-massive "Freeing-the-Freeways" regional freeway expansion project of the 1980's) is actually a significant upgrade from the old configuration of that interchange which featured left-lane exits to both directions of I-20 from both directions of I-285.
The state also recently added collector-distributor lanes to I-20 eastbound between the I-285 and Wesley Chapel Road interchanges because of the amount of people who commute between employment centers of regional importance on the Southside (like the Atlanta Airport, etc) and the I-20 East OTP corridor...So it is not as if the state has done absolutely nothing in regards to the I-285/I-20 East interchange.
I completely agree with you and everyone else who thinks that I-285/I-20 East interchange is overdue for upgrades.
Though, I don't know if that interchange will get the type of full stack interchange that you seem to be wishing for. Because of severe constraints on the state's transportation budget, that I-285/I-20 East interchange is likely only to get a flyover ramp from I-20 westbound to I-285 westbound to accommodate the heavy commuter (and truck) traffic from I-20 WB to I-285 EB towards the Airport.
Also, the completion of the I-285/Flat Shoals Road interchange reconstruction has been pushed back until at least February 2019 because of unforeseen issues with a water main...
When I see I-85 is flogged on google Maps and the connector is only barely budging, if I'm coming from someplace like Fayetteville, McDonough, Peachtree City, or any suburb in southern Atlanta... sometimes I will take I-85 into the connector and use the HOV lane (I have a passenger with me) and use the left hand exit for Memorial Drive which USUALLY lets me off RIGHT before the highway comes to a crawl during evening Rush Hour.
That puts you on Pryor Street and you can continue North a few blocks before reaching Decatur St. Hang a right and follow Decatur St over some rough potholes but fairly predictable traffic into Downtown Decatur and hang a left onto Commerce St which belts around Downtown Decatur, hang another left onto Church St and about 2 miles later you are merged onto U.S. 78 right before it becomes Stone Mountain Freeway. USUALLY, Stone Mountain Freeway is moving during Rush Hour until you get to Hugh Howell Rd, although sometimes you'll get lucky and its moving all the way through East Park Place.
You have two choices depending on traffic...
A.) Get off at Hugh Howell and at the VERY first light, make a right turn (fun fact: this will eventually intersect Lawrenceville Highway and become Beaver Ruin Rd.), and at the VERY NEXT LIGHT, make another right - This is Five Forks Trickum Rd, takes you straight into Downtown Lawrenceville -- Used to be fairly predictable but construction has made it fairly rough lately.
B.) Continue on U.S. 78 East to either Hewatt Rd, Highpoint Rd, or Scenic Highway... all three with some coordination will lead you toward Lawrenceville with Scenic Highway being the easiest but also most congested.
Sometimes I go this way versus sitting on I-85.
I don't take I-285 because it backs up between I-675 and U.S. 78 usually. And going the other way around it backs up at I-20 and also I-75 and then from GA-400 to I-85.
If you use our city streets, like Decatur St/DeKalb Ave, please respect the speed limit and residents who live around it. There is fight going on for DeKalb Ave, to make it safer for all modes of transportation and remove the contraflow lane.
I'm all for making it safer, and especially less bumpy, but I'm not sure how they can pull off removing the reversible lane, unless they replace it with a center left turn lane. While it's not as bad as Ponce it still gets quite a bit of traffic between Downtown Decatur and Downtown Atlanta.
It would be nice to see that street getting a face lift though.
I'm all for making it safer, and especially less bumpy, but I'm not sure how they can pull off removing the reversible lane, unless they replace it with a center left turn lane. While it's not as bad as Ponce it still gets quite a bit of traffic between Downtown Decatur and Downtown Atlanta.
It would be nice to see that street getting a face lift though.
Resurfacing is part of the project. I am in full support of protected left turn lanes at signalized intersections along with pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure upgrades. http://renewatlantabond.com/wp-conte...ion-Packet.pdf
I-285 on the East between I-20 and I-85 is congested in both directions. Obviously, its worse northbound in the mornings and southbound in the afternoons, but the opposite direction isn't free-flowing.
Resurfacing is part of the project. I am in full support of protected left turn lanes at signalized intersections along with pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure upgrades. http://renewatlantabond.com/wp-conte...ion-Packet.pdf
Perhaps slight widening (not for additional vehicles) to accommodate bike lanes on both sides, providing the center left turn lane, and also providing those bike stands where you can rent a bicycle (seen in downtown) at every MARTA rail station along the corridor would make it more appeasing to pedestrians / bicyclist.
That or instead of the center left turn lane, a vegetated 1 lane width median with lamp posts mounted in the center that narrows into a left turn lane at every signalized intersection.
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