Does Atlanta Have the worst big city downtown in the South? (Auburn: train, car)

[Codederick]

Is living in Atlanta car-free feasible if you live and work in Midtown/Buckhead/Downtown (or, say, living in Decatur but working in Midtown)? Is taking the MARTA subway daily reliable?

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by Codederick

Is living in Atlanta car-free feasible if you live and work in Midtown/Buckhead/Downtown (or, say, living in Decatur but working in Midtown)? Is taking the MARTA subway daily reliable?

I live in Kirkwood, work downtown and live car-free. MARTA is far more reliable than any street between Decatur and Atlanta (DeKalb, Ponce, Memorial)

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by Codederick

Is living in Atlanta car-free feasible if you live and work in Midtown/Buckhead/Downtown (or, say, living in Decatur but working in Midtown)? Is taking the MARTA subway daily reliable?

Yes. Certainly.

I have done it while working in Buckhead and living in Midtown and doing it now in Downtown.

I recommend it. Atlanta traffic is no fun and it is best when you only have to see it from the occasional back seat of an Uber.

[Codederick]

Thanks guys. Glad to hear.

Atlanta is pretty damn intriguing to me.

Not a fan of urban sprawl and being stuck in a car but at least you can avoid that by moving to one of the logistical hotspots (Midtown, Buckhead, etc). Another plus is the fairly low cost of living. BTW how's the foot traffic out in Midtown/Buckhead/Decatur/Downtown compared to foot traffic heavyweights, such as NYC and Chicago?

Atlanta has great single ratios and apparently due to the high gay population, it's an awesome city to be in if you're a straight guy, lol. It's also a great city if you're into chocolate shorties, which I am.

[Clayton white guy]

I love my native Atlanta's beauty and vibrancy, but a foot traffic contest, even Downtown in the Peachtree Center hotel district during one of our big conventions (which is when Downtown Atlanta foot traffic reaches its zenith) we would be crushed by lower/midtown Manhattan standards. I really don't know about Chicago; I have never been there.

[Codederick]

Originally Posted by Clayton white guy

I love my native Atlanta's beauty and vibrancy, but a foot traffic contest, even Downtown in the Peachtree Center hotel district during one of our big conventions (which is when Downtown Atlanta foot traffic reaches its zenith) we would be crushed by lower/midtown Manhattan standards. I really don't know about Chicago; I have never been there.

Haha, thanks Clayton. Dudes, how is the foot traffic typically in Midtown, Buckhead, and Decatur?

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by waronxmas

I don't know if that is a given. LA has "dense sprawl", is laid out on a grid, and has highways coming out the wazoo and they have a connectivity/traffic mess on their hands.

Maybe because it's the second-largest metro in the country? I don't see how you can be as big as LA and NOT have bad traffic...at least in the U.S. But a big part of that is because the transit network is inadequate for a metro that big. That's changing but will take some time to truly bear fruit. And I honestly don't know how LA's road network truly stacks up.

But forget LA; look at metros like Houston and DFW whose sprawl isn't as dense but still on the denser side for Sunbelt metros. Their sprawl is gridded and they have pretty extensive road networks and their traffic situations aren't nearly as dire.

[Mutiny77]

Originally Posted by jsvh

I think we will be doing exactly that by restoring the historic buildings and streets in South Downtown:

To an extent, but NOLA's urban fabric is still more cohesive. Look at how the FQ, CBD, and Warehouse District all connect relatively seamlessly for instance.

Atlanta can have a more cohesive urban fabric in downtown, but it will definitely take longer than 10 years to achieve.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by Codederick

Haha, thanks Clayton. Dudes, how is the foot traffic typically in Midtown, Buckhead, and Decatur?

Midtown probably has the most steady 24/7 foot traffic in the metro. You still won't confuse it with Manhattan but it is impressive how vibrant many of the areas have become in just the last few years.

Decatur is good to, it feels like a vibrant small town in the middle of a city.

Buckhead has a upscale, new feel to it. But it still has a lot of wide streets and not a huge amount of foot traffic compared to the others.

Downtown suffers from decades of bad policy trying to widen its streets into speedways, building surface parking lots & fortress-style buildings so its vibrance has suffered greatly. Though go stand in Woodruff Park in the middle of a work day and you will see more people walking around than anywhere else (it just drops off after work hours). Downtown still has the best bones for walkability, and my money is on it being the most vibrant neighborhood again in the coming years.

[Codederick]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Midtown probably has the most steady 24/7 foot traffic in the metro. You still won't confuse it with Manhattan but it is impressive how vibrant many of the areas have become in just the last few years.

Decatur is good to, it feels like a vibrant small town in the middle of a city.

Buckhead has a upscale, new feel to it. But it still has a lot of wide streets and not a huge amount of foot traffic compared to the others.

Downtown suffers from decades of bad policy trying to widen its streets into speedways, building surface parking lots & fortress-style buildings so its vibrance has suffered greatly. Though go stand in Woodruff Park in the middle of a work day and you will see more people walking around than anywhere else (it just drops off after work hours). Downtown still has the best bones for walkability, and my money is on it being the most vibrant neighborhood again in the coming years.

jsvh, you're the authentic MVP!

Midtown sounds pretty damn good. I use Manhattan as a measuring stick but truth be told, Manhattan is probably a bit too congested. Something like Chicago or Toronto is likely ideal.

Are there any other walkable neighborhoods with hawt babes walking around in addition to the ones mentioned? Inman Park looks really nice. I've heard of Little 5 Points, too, but that seems too weird and hipster-ish for me.