Thursday, May 1, 2008

Nothing to complain about Charlotte commute?

This just in: Forbes.com ranks the 10 U.S. cities with the worst commutes. Charlotte didn't make the list. Should it have?

Click the link above the read the story. Here are the 10 worst cities, according to Forbes.com:

10. San Francisco
9. Los Angeles
8. Houston
7. Washington
6. Tampa
5. Dallas
4. Orlando
3. Miami
2. Detroit
1. Atlanta

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

If you have ever driven in any of those cities listed above, you realize traffic in Charlotte doesn't compare at all to those cities.

People here slow down for five minutes on 77/485 and think that is a traffic jam.

Anonymous said...

Agreed. Traffic here isn't really bad when compared to other cities.

Of course the worst traffic jam in the world is the one you're sitting in. On top of that, just because others have it worse doesn't mean that Charlotte's situation is not worthy of improvement.

Anonymous said...

That list is kind of a poor comparison for Charlotte’s traffic. You are talking about real cities with large amounts of automobiles. I have driven in most of those cities and if you compare the actual numbers of cars and drivers Charlotte’s traffic issues are just as bad. The biggest issue with Charlotte is the poor road system. Whoever was involved with planning out the roads must have thought that the city population was never going to grow past what it was 15 years ago. That just shows poor planning and lack of vision of the cities officials. Not to mention the lack of driving skills of most North and South Carolinians.

Anonymous said...

Los Angeles is by far the worst, but they are locked by the ocean on one side. Atlanta traffic sucks. One thing Charlotte has to deal with is the rolling hills of the piedmont. I enjoy my 5 minute commute from Elizabeth to uptown!

Anonymous said...

Even if Charlotte isn't on the list (obviously it wouldn't be) it does not mean we don't have infrastructure issues. NCDOT has the money, they are just wasting it on $150 million projects in Podunkville. How many small towns of 2,000 people need a bypass? Honestly?

Anonymous said...

I've driven in half the cities on the list and I lived in the Bay Area and often went into San Francisco. Charlotte has nothing on these other cities. It's just regular traffic -- better than average, if you've been to other cities in the Top 10.

jd said...

I am from Detroit...I know traffic jams.

I used to have to leave exactly at 5 to get my lil one from day care before 5:45 and I was only going 10 miles.

Anonymous said...

Yup, we aren't in bad shape -- NOW-- compared to these places. I was commuting in NJ before coming here.

By investing in our infrastructure, specifically our public transportation system, we'll stay ahead of the curve in the future.

Anonymous said...

Don't forget that our "rush hour" doesn't last as long as other places.

Anonymous said...

I don't care how other cities are compared to Charlotte's. I grew up in Charlotte. I knew what traffic here used to be like and it is horrible now. Driving from Indian Trail to uptown Charlotte takes 50 minutes to an hour between 7:30 and 9:00 a.m. And that's only for 18 miles, which equates to roughly 20 miles per hour. How does THAT compare with other cities?

Anonymous said...

BOO HOO. Cry me a river.

Anonymous said...

I also grew up here and remember that when there was hardly any traffic. There was also nothing to do, no good restaurants, no decent shopping, downtown sucked, and there were a ton of rednecks. I'll take the increased traffic!

Anonymous said...

Why is traffic such a big deal? Leave earlier, learn to budget your time, learn some patience, don't live so far away from where you work, etc. It isn't that difficult!

Anonymous said...

@ anonymous 3:22PM:

We don't lack driving skills, you lack the ability to assimilate into a more advanced society where we don't need to cut people off, make rude gestures, and yell expletives just to go to the grocery store.

Oh and we use our turn signals too, they are operated by that funny looking stick behind the steering wheel. Try it out sometime.

Anonymous said...

If you don't like it you can get OOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

shut up you stupid hicks

Anonymous said...

Instead of wasting your time calling us hicks, you could turn your commute into a nice little trip back above the Mason-Dixon line.

Anonymous said...

Traffic is never bad for me going to work. Of course I only live .5 miles from work and don't even have to pass through a traffic light. Biking is actually faster than the car.

Anonymous said...

your a bunch of hicks. bahahahaha.

Anonymous said...

"your a bunch of hicks. bahahahaha."

How about "you're a bunch of hicks." You see, "you're" is a contraction of "you are." Here’s another great example: you’re ignorant.

Anonymous said...

Its amazing - I traded my "anywhere from 30-50 min. depending on the day" drive to work for a 40 min. commute relaxing on the light rail and it has pretty much erased any concerns I ever had about driving/commuting in Charlotte... so I would rank Charlotte low on this list as well. I highly recommend everyone try the LRT, even if it takes a little bit longer for you. It is so stress free and dependable.