Orlando is not a very good city to live in (Tampa: townhouse, job market)

[StreetSmarts]

^^^ I was just in Alpharetta last week actually. Awesome place; looks like Lake Mary but with hills. The people seemed happy and friendly. Our friends live there and love it. Congestion was bad.

[DavieJ89]

Originally Posted by brinkofsunshine

Traffic is notoriously bad in Atlanta. From what I've heard, it's some of the worst in the country. Definitely worse than Orlando.

I'll take both Atlanta traffic and Orlando traffic over Los Angeles any day. I was there a month ago and it was congested almost ALL the time

[Pete C]

Originally Posted by ComSense

^^^ I was just in Alpharetta last week actually. Awesome place; looks like Lake Mary but with hills. The people seemed happy and friendly. Our friends live there and love it. Congestion was bad.

Alpharetta's a good place to get a huge house for the money, but I think "awesome" is far too strong a word to describe it. I lived there for a few years. Sure it has hills, but other than that it's as generic as generic can be...no character, no downtown/historic district, and shopping mall after shopping mall. Then again Lake Mary isn't my idea of heaven either. In Atlanta if we are talking suburbs I much prefer Dunwoody or Roswell.

[OrlFlaUsa]

Originally Posted by placestogo

Traffic in Atlanta is horrible!!! Even in the suburbs, HORRIBLE! I run my own business and usually can avoid having to drive during rush hour, however I was out and about last week and was stuck in traffic for over an hour to get somewhere 10 miles away, in the suburbs!!! Orlando is much much better in regards to traffic and crime! It's actually a BREATH OF FRESH AIR compared to ATL and surrounding...

Despite the fact that I think people make Atlanta's traffic sound worse than it actually is, I am thankful that Orlando traffic doesn't hold a candle and agree with the above quote. I do however wish our interstates shared 3 important qualities of Atlanta's:

1. HOV Lanes.
2. More Trees and Sound Walls Surrounding the Interstates.
3. More Lanes & Better Interchanges (the 408/I-4 merge is suicidal).

Both Atlanta and Orlando have so much in common. Big tourist destinations, growing television & media producers, and non-gridded streets, which ultimately stacks the cards against such rapidly growing metros.

[johnatl]

Originally Posted by OrlFlaUsa

Despite the fact that I think people make Atlanta's traffic sound worse than it actually is, I am thankful that Orlando traffic doesn't hold a candle and agree with the above quote. I do however wish our interstates shared 3 important qualities of Atlanta's:

1. HOV Lanes.
2. More Trees and Sound Walls Surrounding the Interstates.
3. More Lanes & Better Interchanges (the 408/I-4 merge is suicidal).

Both Atlanta and Orlando have so much in common. Big tourist destinations, growing television & media producers, and non-gridded streets, which ultimately stacks the cards against such rapidly growing metros.

This is so accurate it's almost scary.

And PeteC, I always agree with your truthful opinions and assessments.

The real deal is that yes, traffic SUCKS here. BUT, we do have rapid rail - and if you live and work in the right areas to utilize it, it can work wonders for your quality of life. Not to mention a single-seat ride to the Airport from our equivalent to Downtown, Maitland & Altamonte/Longwood.

The bottom line is that traffic really is bad in both metros, but you guys have it way better than you think you do!

As far as the claim by a one-time poster that it takes them 3 HOURS to get home from work in Atlanta, I'm still not buying it.

[StreetSmarts]

Originally Posted by Pete C

Alpharetta's a good place to get a huge house for the money, but I think "awesome" is far too strong a word to describe it. I lived there for a few years. Sure it has hills, but other than that it's as generic as generic can be...no character, no downtown/historic district, and shopping mall after shopping mall. Then again Lake Mary isn't my idea of heaven either. In Atlanta if we are talking suburbs I much prefer Dunwoody or Roswell.

Yeah, Roswell was really cool too. I cant remember what city we were in but one of them had a cool, historic downtown. The people seemed very friendly and the entire area was very new and clean. It reminded me of a nicer and hilly Lake Mary.

[StreetSmarts]

We were in downtown ATL and got back to our friends house near Alpharetta in like 45 mins. I wasnt watching the clock, but I believe it took us around 40-45 minutes. It was somewhere around 5pm or 5:30. We stayed at about 70mph pretty consistently the whole way.

[OrlFlaUsa]

Originally Posted by johnatl

This is so accurate it's almost scary.

And PeteC, I always agree with your truthful opinions and assessments.

Aww thanks John, you and Pete are the best.

Originally Posted by johnatl

The real deal is that yes, traffic SUCKS here. BUT, we do have rapid rail - and if you live and work in the right areas to utilize it, it can work wonders for your quality of life. Not to mention a single-seat ride to the Airport from our equivalent to Downtown, Maitland & Altamonte/Longwood.

That's what I tell people when they bash MARTA. I would love to be able take a M"O"RTA train (lol) from Altamonte Spings (Sandy Springs minus 2 miles) to Winter Park (Buckhead minus 1 mile), to uptown Orlando (uptown Atlanta) then on to downtown Orlando (downtown Atlanta) and then on to I-Drive and MCO.

Originally Posted by johnatl

The bottom line is that traffic really is bad in both metros, but you guys have it way better than you think you do!

True. It's still no walk in the park and in some sense it's easier to drive in Atlanta. Afterall better infastructure will do that plus more congestion=slower speeds which could be considered easier than drag racing down I-4.

Originally Posted by johnatl

As far as the claim by a one-time poster that it takes them 3 HOURS to get home from work in Atlanta, I'm still not buying it.

I could easily be in Spartanburg within 3 hours of leaving Atlanta, with the exception of an accident or some other abnormal traffic situation.

[shir2010]

Originally Posted by g0gat0rs

I know right. People wanna know bad traffic try I-95 Boston/New Hampshire split during rush hour in a blizzard. And try the 10 lane race tracks that Atlanta calls their highways.

Orlando has it good imo. I love Orlando, I hate the criminals, and I also hate the liberals that protect the criminals in the name of humanity.

Hi, what does "imo" mean, I see it on here sometimes and can't stand not knowing what it means.

Thanks

[StreetSmarts]

^^^imo = in my opinion.