Community Chat

[Goldengate8361]

Traffic has gotten ridiculous where I live! Just a couple of years ago, it took me about 20-25 minutes to get to work. It now takes about 45 minutes to 1.5 hours because the traffic has increased so much! (I live in a fast growing city!) How do you all cope? Any tricks for dealing with the stress of traffic and rude drivers?

[Laura14]

I literally live down the street from where I work. Atlanta has the worst traffic in the world. I am not from here, I don't get it, and they refuse to put in mass transit to the suburbs because "bad people will come and rob my home".  They vote it down every year.  I lived all my life near Philly.  I never saw anyone on the Speedline with a full furniture set and console tv back in the day plus home accessories, ever.

I can tell you that most people here live on audio books while they sit in their cars for hours each way. They all must have lifetime subscriptions to audible.

[MaggieMack]

I can't really complain, the city I live in is only about 180,000. I don't do work that requires a regular schedule, so whenever I have to go somewhere or take the pup to daycare I always travel before or after the rush morning or afternoon. Prevents the little stress I might encounter.

@Laura14, my husband used to talk about Marietta never wanting mass transit when he lived there for the very reason you mentioned. When I lived in the Bay Area, I used to ride BART to work in SF every day. That ended the day the power went out and my train was under the bay for 3 hours. Car pooled from then on.

[Laura14]

@MaggieMack  The tiny little system they do have is the cleanest nicest one I've ever been on.  I guess if I need a little spending money I could always ride the rails up and down the one route and knock over a few homes since that's what Marta riders do apparently.  It's so ridiculous.

[cotton4me]

I live in a high traffic area with long commutes.  When I was working I would listen to books on tape.  It depends on what you like, but I bought scriptures on tape and really enjoyed listening to them over and over.  I also listened to various radio stations - news, sermons, etc.  There were certain people I enjoyed listending to each day.  I tried to psych myself out and tell myself I was in a nice comfortable car with air conditioning, relaxing, listening to good things. 

[Burnsite]

Hi, goldengate,   I don't have any skills or tricks, but I curse a lot.  Then I feel bad. 

Traffic here in tourist season (starting now) is so bad, because my city is crowded with perma-residents and then swelled by temp-residents who (being on perpetual vacation)  stop in the middle of the street and make phone calls without pulling over (two on my work route last week), make weird u-turns, and perambulate very slowly because they are lost.  I was new here once and totally understand the lost vibe, but the never pulling over if you have to stop??  What is up with that?  My city is full of parking lots for checking the cell phone or reprogramming the navigator.

[MaggieMack]

@cotton4me, I feel for you. When I lived in the Bay Area, I got so sick of commuting, it was one of the reasons that figured into my move to the Midwest. One night during my commute, I had a guy get out of his car on the Bay Bridge in stopped traffic, walked directly toward me pointing a gun in my face. That will wake you up! Fortunately, traffic started moving again. Then there was the time a CHP officer pulled me over . . . To ask me out on a date. Should have reported him, but he WAS cute. 

[Preds]

I use very "colorful" language and crank up the radio to my favorite stations.  I smile at all the idiots I'm cursing.  I sing at the top of my lungs and dream of ways to run over those that tick me off.  LOL  Then I sit back and watch others doing the same thing to the same ones and I take a sip of coke and relax and enjoy the ride until the next one comes along.  Then repeat until I arrive home.

[phoenixbrd]

I have the same situation as the OP.  I have found listening to a CD that allows me to reflect and set a positive tone for the work day ahead is a great way to deal with the ever growing traffic that makes it difficult to anticipate the time to get to work. 

[gidgetgh]

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@Laura14 wrote:

I literally live down the street from where I work. Atlanta has the worst traffic in the world. I am not from here, I don't get it, and they refuse to put in mass transit to the suburbs because "bad people will come and rob my home".  They vote it down every year.  I lived all my life near Philly.  I never saw anyone on the Speedline with a full furniture set and console tv back in the day plus home accessories, ever.

I can tell you that most people here live on audio books while they sit in their cars for hours each way. They all must have lifetime subscriptions to audible.

I've lived in Atlanta 45 years. When Marta was first started, in the 70's, traffic was nothing like it is now.  Atlanta was still fairly small and traffic was manageable. Marta was an initiative of Fulton and Dekalb counties, just like today and the sales tax in those counties reflected that. They're starting to talk now about bringing the rail line, finally, to North Fulton County, further north than North Springs/Dunwoody.   I don't remember it being on the ballot for expansion to other counties, except for maybe Cobb County once, years and years ago.  It hasn't been "voted down every year" as it's very rarely been on any ballot. 

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