Going straight through is not bad unless you hit it at rush hour, then the by-pass is loaded also. We do the same as Our Time and go straight through on I75. I don't usually take the by pass in any city. I've LIVED north Atlanta for 35 years and I have never taken the by-pass to go anywhere.

Deciding whether to take the I-285 "Perimeter" bypass or drive straight through the city on the I-75/I-85 "Connector" depends entirely on the time of day. In 2026, the general rule is: take the Connector if it is not rush hour. The bypass was originally built to save time, but it has become one of the most congested and dangerous highways in the U.S., often plagued by heavy truck traffic (which is prohibited on the city connector). If you are passing through between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM, or after 7:00 PM, the straight-through route is usually faster and less stressful. However, if you are hitting Atlanta during peak morning (7-9 AM) or evening (4-7 PM) rush hours, both options will be slow. In these cases, it is vital to use a real-time navigation app like Waze or Google Maps, as a single accident on the bypass can add over an hour to your trip compared to the stop-and-go traffic of the city center.