When people come to Atlanta, whether it’s visiting or to live, there is one problem that persists over all others, traffic. Atlanta’s traffic is not something that has sprung up over the last decade, rather you can trace Atlanta’s traffic problems back to the early 1800s. Atlanta has had traffic problems since 1837 - that’s before cars were invented, by the way - because of three reasons: its strange grid, its focus on building over infrastructure, and the enthusiastic adoption of the automobile in the early 1900s. (Atlfood. "Why Does Atlanta Have So Much Traffic? (There's a Historical Reason)." Atlanta Food Walks. March 26, 2018. Accessed April 30, 2019. https://atlantafoodwalks.com/2018/03/26/the-unexpected-history-of-atlanta-traffic/). To understand Atlanta’s traffic problem and to determine possible fixes you have to understand what created these problems in the first place.
In the early 1800’s a Colonel of the Western Atlantic Railroad named Stephen Long picked out a spot to halt several rail lines that extended as far as New York and Kansas. Another Colonel once explained “There were no special reasons for it – no terminal facilities or anything of that sort held up as an inducement, but . . . ‘It looked like a good place to stop and we stopped.’” (Atlfood. "Why Does Atlanta Have So Much Traffic? (There's a Historical Reason)." Atlanta Food Walks. March 26, 2018. Accessed April 30, 2019. https://atlantafoodwalks.com/2018/03/26/the-unexpected-history-of-atlanta-traffic/). Early founders of Atlanta knew that the grid system was the most successful way to design a city. The grid system allowed for a more adequate form of transportation, growing Real Estate markets, and help foster a growing economy. So the founders of Atlanta marked out a grid, but contrary to other cities Atlanta’s grid ran parallel and perpendicular with rail lines. This would prove problematic in the future. As Atlanta expanded beyond ju...