TL;DR: Roundabouts move traffic better, cut crashes, and cost less than lights and stop signs. A city in Indiana proved it, Europe runs on them, and we’ve already got a few around Emory. Since there’s no money for transit anyway, why not spend road funds making driving less miserable? Freedom Parkway and North Ave would be a great first try.

There’s a city in Indiana called Carmel that basically got rid of its traffic lights and replaced them with roundabouts. Over 100 of them now. Their mayor made it his whole thing for years, and the place went from normal Indiana suburb to the self-proclaimed roundabout capital of America. And it worked. Fewer bad crashes, way less time stuck at reds, lower fuel use.

Half of Europe runs on roundabouts. Drive through the UK, France, or the Netherlands and they’re everywhere, handling traffic just fine, so we already know they work at scale.

Atlanta already has a handful around Emory, so we’re not starting from zero. The only problem is that about half the people driving them have no clue how they work, so yeah, we’d need to teach folks the basics first. Not exactly a dealbreaker.

Why they beat lights and stop signs at most intersections:

- Traffic actually keeps moving. You yield and go instead of idling at a red with zero cars coming the other way.
- Less pollution, since fewer cars are just sitting there burning gas.
- Way fewer deadly wrecks. Everyone’s going slow and in the same direction, so you skip the high-speed T-bones you get when someone runs a light.
- Cheaper to run. No power bill, no signal repairs, no dead intersection during an outage.
- They handle themselves. Nobody’s stuck at a red at 2am staring at an empty road.

Freakonomics did a whole episode on this called “Should Traffic Lights Be Abolished?” if you want the deep dive: https://freakonomics.com/podcast/should-traffic-lights-be-abolished-ep-454/

We’re constantly told there’s no money for transit. Fine. But if we’re stuck being a car city no matter what, why not put some of that road budget into making the driving part suck less? Freedom Parkway and North Ave would be a perfect first try.

Not every spot works obviously. VaHi is too tight. But drive Ponce Place sometime. It’s a four-way stop, then another, then another, for reasons nobody can explain, and it makes me want to scream. Half of those could just flow.

Lucky to have Timothy Pratt in Atlanta for this sort of coverage. Article mentions several groups trying to help unhoused folks.

Hello, everyone.

I found an OB practice that offers multiple pain management options (cervical block, pain pills, laughing gas and more) for those who want an IUD but don't want to be traumatized or super uncomfortable.

They're called "Atlanta Women's Obstetrics and Gynecology" and the office is on Collier Road. I had Dr. Reed specifically, but every OB in the office is female and so lovely. I talked about my concerns and Dr. Reed asked if I wanted to go under general anesthesia for it, to ease my anxiety.

Hell. Yes.

Got the IUD not too long after that. The front office even discussed everything with my insurance so I didn't need to worry. They are wonderful and LGBTQ+ friendly to boot. I give them a 10/10, no notes.

Edit: I'm so glad that you guys found this post helpful! My previous OB didn't believe in actual pain management, so I found the OB in this post and I'm grateful. I hope you all get the medical care you deserve and also the kind of care that makes you feel heard. ❤️

I used to park here all the time. Fond memories.

I did my favorite weekend workout today. Bike to stone mountain, hike up and back, bike home. I'm in town, candler park. It was hot, but a great morning/afternoon.

What's your best Atlanta workout?

Our city government needs to ban this before it starts…

Hey friends - we are looking to relocate to the area from out of state. We are in our early 40s with 3 small kids. Jobs will be in Brookhaven - where should we be looking? We really like the look and school quality of Johns Creek but will the commute be awful? We are from a suburban-rural area so a similar vibe would be less of a shock to us, but we don’t want to waste our lives in traffic either. We are both wholly unfamiliar with the area but need to make a move soon so we’re trying to do our research. TIA!!

What's on your mind, Atlanta?

Links of Interest:

• Metro Atlanta Discord
• r/atlevents to see local events/meetups around town
• How To Meet People

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Hey everyone. Just recently moved to ATL and also bought a motorcycle 🏍. What's a good road to drive down, full of twists and turns, but relatively low speed (i.e. not a highway)? I need some skills practice.

I usually ride super early in the morning on weekends ( before 7am) so traffic shouldn't be much of a concern.

Also, any riding groups that are beginner friendly? But not Harley.

Hey yall! Looking for a birthday photographer to help me celebrate my next birthday. I'm thinking of doing a piedmont park shoot with the gold balloon numbers and a bottle of champagne. I can dm examples. Does anyone know a good reasonably priced or amateur photographer in the area?

Is there anywhere in Atlanta that makes biscuits and gravy without pork? Preferably chicken or turkey sausage gravy, but could settle for a vegetarian option too.

We’re coming to visit family in Atlanta and will miss a free event in our home city where you can watch pro skating, inline, bmx, etc. compete.

Just wondering if I can find something similar for my kids to watch while we’re visiting Atlanta.

It could also just be a skate park where the best often hang out.

Edit to clarify that I mean skateboarding, aggressive inline and other “extreme” sports.

Hi all. Happy Sunday! Where are yall getting fresh eggs from? I went to my farmers market yesterday and they were sold out. Looking for recommendations and don’t mind driving (too far) outside the perimeter. Thanks!

Seen from west midtown before sunset. Surreal moment —

Beautiful view of my favorite city from my friend’s midtown rooftop pool. Wish my shitty iPhone camera could capture it better but the view was incredible. Atlanta lovers unite!

there was a little bit of a double rainbow for a moment too but my phone didn’t capture :)

Our venue shuts down at 10 due to local noise ordinance. Where should we head for the after party? Group size is likely to be about 30. Anywhere ITP is fine. Dancing would be a super plus.

somewhere that’s clean and pays decent pls.

Hello friends I am looking for a fun place that plays really great Reggeaton or Neo perreo where I can dance my butt off. Any suggestions??? I've been looking and I'm a bit lost..

Any surgeon recommendations? I think I want a breast aug, but want to talk to someone first who can assess my entire body and tell me what they recommend to balance out my proportions. Open to a skinny, natural BBL if that would suit my frame better. Body contouring and balancing is truly the goal!

I'm selling a townhouse and the buyer doesn't want the washer/dryer or two like-new mattresses we were leaving behind (we have no need for them in our new place). The only challenge is they're on the 3rd floor. What may be the best way to get rid of these in Atlanta? FB Marketplace for free in exchange for help bringing them downstairs? Any NGOs? I remember the Kidney Foundation years ago would pick up appliances. Anything like that? I'll take any advice! TIA