ATLANTA : an urban hub

First of all, Atlanta is an important urban hub of the United States.

Indeed three major interstate highways converge in Atlanta. We can quote I-20 which runs east to west across the town, I-75 from northwest to southeast and I-85 from northeast to southwest. I-75 and I-85 combine to form the Downtown Connector through the middle of the city, which carries more than 340 000 vehicles a day. Thus it is subject of many traffic jams.

The metropolitan Atlanta is also approached by 30 freeways and Atlanta is mostly encircled by Interstate 285 known as the Perimeter.

As you can see the motor traffic is really important in the city and consequently it has a reputation as being one of the most dangerous cities for pedestrians. As an anecdote, the famous Gone with the Wind author, Margaret Mitchell was killed by a car while crossing Peachtree Street.
Moreover, as a result of this strong automotive reliance and so heavy traffic, Atlanta is one of the most polluted cities in the country.

Furthermore the city possesses several airports but its major one is Hartsfield International Airport: it may be considered as one of the world’s busiest airports as it provides services between Atlanta and many national & international destinations. It carried 84.4 million passengers in 2006: it is a really huge hub for the national air traffic.

Although it’s an inland city, Atlanta is a thriving shipping center, and the city is also served by the CSX and Norfolk Southern rail lines.

ATLANTA: a top business city.

What’s more, Atlanta is not only an urban hub but also a top business city: the city may appear as the economic capital of the American Southeast.

Atlanta receives a lot of investments from the Megalopolis.

We can find in the city many malls, a busy CBD and around it are several edge cities and industrial estates.

In Atlanta’s CBD are present the registered offices of numerous multinational companies. For example, here are