Dallas? Gainesville/Cartersville/Canton? Job at airport..... (Atlanta, Columbus: how much, employment)

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

How are these areas when it comes to a commute to the airport? Commute would be 2 times a week (maybe 3 sometimes), not everyday. Would this be a big QOL killer?

Would love to be up north somewhere on the edge of the mountains (for hiking) if possible, but that can be sacrificed since anywhere in ATL is reasonably close to that.

I would prefer not to live south. I have in-laws in that area And I really just don't like it. I want to be near hiking.

Main thing I'm looking for is affordability as I have a single income family. Also want to be around 'stuff', so I would prefer a suburban area rather than a small town.

[VJP]

Canton/Cartersville to the airport is 1 hour 15 min to 2+ hours depending on time, weather, and construction delays. I am also an avid hiker and if you can stomach the drive, the proximity to the trails cant be beat. QOL is up to you, my QOL is defined by how much time I can spend outside on the days I choose to. It would be worth it to me to commute a bit longer during the week to minimize drive time to the trail, especially in the fall and early spring when daylight hours are shorter.

[DoubleZ OTP]

Originally Posted by Mississippi Alabama Line

How are these areas when it comes to a commute to the airport? Commute would be 2 times a week (maybe 3 sometimes), not everyday. Would this be a big QOL killer?

Would love to be up north somewhere on the edge of the mountains (for hiking) if possible, but that can be sacrificed since anywhere in ATL is reasonably close to that.

I would prefer not to live south. I have in-laws in that area And I really just don't like it. I want to be near hiking.

Main thing I'm looking for is affordability as I have a single income family. Also want to be around 'stuff', so I would prefer a suburban area rather than a small town.

To me... a commute from any of Dallas, Gainesville, Cartersville, or Canton would be a quality of life killer, even at only two or three days each week. You'd be looking at 1 hour each way if you're lucky, more likely 1.5 hours or even two hours each way on a bad day. I would not want to spend 3 hours a day in a car for two or three days each week under any circumstance, not to mention the implications on your wallet (gas and maintenance is expensive), your health (sitting for long periods of time isn't healthy, plus driving in traffic can be stressful and bad for mental health), and your safety (driving can be a fairly dangerous activity, and the longer you're on the road, the more likely you are to be involved in a crash).


I would strongly encourage you to consider the Newnan area of Coweta County. I know you said that you would prefer not to live on the southside of Atlanta, but the Newnan/Peachtree City area is much different than the rest of the southside (mostly in a good way); the vibe is actually quite similar to some places you named like Dallas and Canton.

- Newnan is only about 30 to 40 minutes away from the Airport via I-85, and there's usually very minimal traffic on that stretch of I-85, which means an easier commute for you.

- Newnan is actually not too far away from mountains... just not the mountains you're thinking of. The Talladega Mountains of Alabama, where you'll find lots of hiking, are about 2 hours away from Newnan; one of these mountains is Cheaha Mountain, which is Alabama's tallest peak. Additionally, the Dugger Mountain Wilderness area of Alabama -- near the Georgia border -- can be accessed from Newnan in as little as 1.5 hours. Finally, the much smaller Pine Mountain Range near Columbus can be reached in as little as 1 hour. For something closer to Newnan, the massive Cochran Mill Park in Chattahoochee Hills is 30 minutes away or so.

- Newnan is rather affordable, and it has most of the suburban amenities you would ever want or need.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Mississippi Alabama Line

How are these areas when it comes to a commute to the airport? Commute would be 2 times a week (maybe 3 sometimes), not everyday. Would this be a big QOL killer?

Would love to be up north somewhere on the edge of the mountains (for hiking) if possible, but that can be sacrificed since anywhere in ATL is reasonably close to that.

I would prefer not to live south. I have in-laws in that area And I really just don't like it. I want to be near hiking.

Main thing I'm looking for is affordability as I have a single income family. Also want to be around 'stuff', so I would prefer a suburban area rather than a small town.

Of the four outlying areas you named, Dallas (Paulding County) very likely would provide the shortest commutes to and from the Atlanta Airport, with one-way commutes ranging from about 50 minutes (with no traffic) to about 1 hour, 40 minutes or more with heavy traffic… Depending on what part of the Dallas area you would be commuting from, of course.

Gainesville probably would provide the longest commutes to and from the Atlanta Airport, with one-way commutes ranging from about 1 hour, 10 minutes (with no traffic) to about 2 hours or more with heavy traffic.

One-way commutes between Cartersville and the Atlanta Airport would range from between about 55 minutes with no traffic, to about 1 hour, 30 minutes or more with heavy traffic.

One-way commute times between Canton and the Atlanta Airport would roughly be about the same as the one-way commute times between Cartersville and the ATL Airport.

If commuting from Cartersville or Canton to the ATL Airport during morning rush hours, you could likely bypass much of the traffic congestion along routes like I-75 and/or I-575 southbound by using the I-75/I-575 Northwest Corridor reversible express toll lanes that run along Interstates 575 and 75 through Cherokee and Cobb counties south to the I-75/I-285 Cobb Cloverleaf interchange.

You could also use the I-75/I-575 Northwest Corridor reversible express toll lanes to bypass traffic congestion on Interstates 75 and/or 575 northbound while commuting back home, if you had to commute between the ATL Airport and Cartersville or Canton during afternoon/evening rush hours.

I-85 Northeast also has HOT (High Occupancy Toll) lanes that operate on both directions of the highway through Gwinnett County for about 20 miles or so between the I-85/I-285 Spaghetti Junction and the I-85/I-985 split/merge interchanges that could be used to bypass some rush hour traffic congestion while commuting between the ATL Airport and the Gainesville area.

But the I-85 Northeast HOT lanes may not always be as reliable for bypassing peak-hour traffic congestion in the untolled lanes of the I-85 roadway because the I-85 Northeast HOT lanes are not barrier-separated from the the rest of the I-85 roadway and major collisions that occur in the untolled lanes of the I-85 roadway can easily spillover into the I-85 NE HOT lanes and disrupt traffic flow there as well… But even with that apparent flaw, the I-85 NE HOT lanes can successfully be used to bypass much traffic congestion along the I-85 NE roadway on many days.

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

Originally Posted by DoubleZ OTP

I would strongly encourage you to consider the Newnan area of Coweta County.

Yeah, certainly understand. I'm very familiar with that area, as that's where the in-laws are. Of course, that's not a deal breaker, but I was just very hopeful with the teleworking the way it is, it would allow a chance to live up north. It's sounding like that's not possible.

Thanks for the insight on the hiking in Alabama. I've hiked all over North Alabama but never in those areas you mention.

There's the possibility of a one day per week commute, but these things are rather unknown so I'd rather prepare for the worst.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Mississippi Alabama Line

Yeah, certainly understand. I'm very familiar with that area, as that's where the in-laws are. Of course, that's not a deal breaker, but I was just very hopeful with the teleworking the way it is, it would allow a chance to live up north. It's sounding like that's not possible.

Thanks for the insight on the hiking in Alabama. I've hiked all over North Alabama but never in those areas you mention.

There's the possibility of a one day per week commute, but these things are rather unknown so I'd rather prepare for the worst.

If you really want to be (and strongly feel that you need to be) near the foothills and ranges of the Blue Ridge Mountains north of Atlanta, commuting between outlying Northside exurban foothills communities like Dallas or Cartersville or Canton or Gainesville and the Atlanta Airport could be manageable if done only no more than 2-3 days each week.

And the commutes between those outlying exurban foothills areas and the Atlanta Airport could be even more manageable if the commutes were done during off-peak hours, outside of morning rush hours (roughly about 7-10am) and afternoon/evening rush hours (roughly about 3-7pm).

A West/Northwest metro Atlanta far outer-suburban/exurban foothills community like Dallas would provide the most manageable commute to and from the Atlanta Airport relative to the other Northside exurban foothills communities you named.

I’ve got family, friends and co-workers who live in the Douglasville area (which is located immediately south of the Dallas area), including some friends who live on the Paulding County side of the Douglasville area near South Paulding High School who commuted to and from jobs at the Atlanta Airport for many years.

Despite the roughly hour-long off-peak commute times between those areas and the Atlanta Airport with no traffic, the commutes between that area of outer-suburban/exurban West metro Atlanta (Douglas County, South Paulding County and even Central Paulding County) and a major regional employment and activity hub like the Atlanta Airport are considered to be relatively very easy commutes by metro Atlanta standards.

The family, friends and co-workers of mine that commuted between Douglas and Paulding counties and their jobs at the Atlanta Airport did those commutes for many years with ease, living in those West metro Atlanta areas in large part because those were exceedingly safe outer-suburban/exurban areas that they considered to be located relatively very close to their jobs at the Atlanta Airport.

Commutes between outlying Northwest metro Atlanta exurban foothills communities Cartersville and Canton and the Atlanta Airport are doable with the use of the I-75/I-575 toll lanes and the West Wall of the I-285 Perimeter during peak traffic hours.

While a commute between Gainesville (a bustling exurban foothills community that is considered to be the urban hub of the greater Northeast Georgia Mountains region) and the Atlanta Airport is doable if done no more than only about 2-3 days each week.

If you really love being in (and really want to be in) the foothills near the Blue Ridge Mountains, the commutes between the outlying exurban foothills communities located closer to foothill and mountain hiking areas and the Atlanta Airport are doable IF those commutes only take place no more than 2-3 days each week.

It seems to be very much worth it to live in an area that you’ll really like and love living in, especially if you won’t have to commute to your job at the ATL Airport anymore than 2-3 days per week.

[Citykid3785]

Of the ones you mentioned, cartersville and canton

[Mississippi Alabama Line]

Man @Born 2 Roll, you have this down to a science! Thanks!