Warning: This Commute May Be Hazardous To Your Health

Metro Atlanta ranks highly in many "best places" lists. But there's one ranking the region is not proud of -- it has the second least healthy commute in the nation.

1 minute read

July 26, 2007, 6:00 AM PDT

By Alex Pearlstein


"Only one big metro area in the Unites States has a less healthy commute than metro Atlanta, according to a report by Forbes.com this week. The report gives equal weight to air pollution, length of peak-hour travel times and crash fatalities. Atlanta doesn't get top - or, should we say, bottom - marks on those individually, but put them all together and the area is the second worst in the country, according to Forbes' analysis. The Riverside, Calif., area tops the list."

"Riverside has the highest rate of crash deaths, according to the report. Rush hour drivers in the Los Angeles area had the longest delay from congestion, according to the Texas Transportation Institute, with Atlanta coming in fourth, at 67 annual hours of delay."

"The Atlanta metro area ranks 13th in the nation for particle pollution, according to Atlanta's Clean Air Campaign. It is improving in recent years, partly because of cooler, rainier weather."

Wednesday, July 25, 2007 in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

October 28, 2026 - Zachary Whalen

A car drives through a puddle, making a large splash. Rain pours down.

California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour

If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.

October 28, 2026 - Grist

Lake Powell with much of the water evaporated.

Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River

Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.

October 30, 2026 - Yale Environment 360

Nilu Jenks wears a long gray coat and speaks with one man and two women outside.

Housing is the top priority of Seattle’s sole new councilmember

Jenks campaigned on building 1,000 new units of affordable housing.

November 8 - Reason

People sit on wooden benches on a bus in Miami

New tax cuts may slash $1.5 billion in funding for Miami transit, public parks

Amendment 3 will save Miami-Dade homeowners $2,700 in 2028.

November 8 - Miami New Times

Two men install solar panels on the roof of a house.

Arizona, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania hope to finally advance climate goals post-midterms

The three states have spent years under Republican or divided control.

November 8 - Grist

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.