Atlanta: Your Biking Wisdom in 10 Words
 

"The Times is collecting riders’ shared wisdom about biking where they live" in a Google Maps mashup from the NY Times: Atlanta: Your Biking Wisdom in 10 Words.

Austin, D.C, and seven other city maps are also available there.

We moved from ATL to Florida because the road cycling sucks. Too many cagers that hate cyclists because they are in the way.
My 10 words (or less): Metro-Atlanta IS NOT a cycling-friendly area!!

I ride out i the country. Atlanta Sucks

^^^^Exactly!!! I was telling some one else this in the advocacy forum not long ago. ATL cycling does suck. People in ATL seem to think that people should not be on bicycles or something. I live in Little 5 Points in ATL and the streets can get a little small sometimes but the drivers do not care! I REALLY think they are out for blood. Ive had airport bus drivers yell at me "get on the sidewalk" when im riding in a lane that has the bicycle symbol painted RIGHT ON THE GROUND! Im from NJ so it is definitely different here in ATL. Im just counting the days until I move(taking care of business right now).

I went from a 4000 mile year living in the southern suburbs of Atlanta, to something like a 700 mile six months. The only place I would ride after my first few was the Silver Comet. I agree wholeheatedly with the above posters comments. Drivers here are quite inconsiderate. What is funny (not really) is that they are 100X better than they were a few years ago, so it is improving. The other concern expressed, the roads, are a big part of the negative aspect as well. The condition of the "bike" portion of the road or more aptly the area you get pushed to is commonly rutted and heaved with rain grates turned the wrong way perfectly wide for catching tires as well as close proximity to the telephone poles and other roadside crap. The only time I will consider riding in Atl at this point are large organized rides where traffic is diverted or dispersed through the size of the crowd.

I take a Ritchey Breakaway travel road bike on business trips. Atlanta is the only place I've neglected to even ride it. It just isn't a place that inspires me to pedal. ****ty fast drivers and a web of traffic lights and roads. You'd have to get several miles out of the city to find country roads worth riding.

And here I was thinking that Atlanta (Metro-suburbs included) was pretty darn awesome for riding. I thought we had aggressive and hateful drivers but maybe that was everywhere? Guess not. I am quite happy with it since I have nothing else to compare it to.

Surely it's not as bad as all that. Roswell, north suburb, was the first city in Georgia to be designated "Bicycle Friendly Community" by the League of American Bicyclists. Personally I feel better about riding in Alpharetta than in Roswell.

True, the literal first thing I noticed in Georgia, from the airport to work, was the unusually high proportion of truly bad drivers. At the time I attributed it to the weather and general tense atmosphere (it was early 2002) but it never really changed. I haven't found it that difficult to deal with while cycling however.

The Silver Comet Trail is the safest place to ride.

Not if you are a pedestrian. Cyclists will run you over...

I would actually say that for my own experience I saw almost nothing but courtesy out of the CYCLISTS there with little exception. My issue was with the peds and in particular the dog walkers. Very few "situations" but they were always the inconsiderate ****** over the use of the path.