Stress building as Cobb police prepare for Braves traffic, officer says

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — He’s got one of the most stressful jobs in metro Atlanta: figure out the traffic flow for the new SunTrust Park.

Channel 2's Ross Cavitt spoke exclusively to Cobb County Police Lt. J.D. Lorens about how Braves fans will get to and from the stadium on game nights.

“I’m not going to lie stress is going up a little,” Lorens told Cavitt.

Lorens said he had no idea that when the Braves announced they were moving to Cobb, it would change his life dramatically.

“It’s not just looking at the best way for traffic to flow, it’s so much more than that. You have volumes and capacities of roadways, you have roadway constructions and roadway diets all sorts of stuff I’m learning in the process,” Lorens said.

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Lorens has spent time as a teacher as well, trying to calm fears in the neighborhood that their lives will be turned into a never ending rush hour.

“My worry is traffic,” said one neighbor.

“They’re just trying to get home or get to work and all of a sudden they have a ballpark on their doorsteps and we don’t want to forget about those folks,” Lorens said.

Studies of the flow around Interstate 285 and 75 show traffic starts to lighten up at 6:30 p.m., so the Braves decided to move game times back to 7:30 p.m.

Lorens points to the so-called “slip ramp” on the Cobb Parkway exit from 75 and 285 that we found still under construction. When finished, it will shoot traffic directly off the interstates right toward the stadium without stopping.

Twenty one road projects around the stadium are still in progress but workers have told Lorens they’ll be about two-thirds ready for opening day.

“(So) we may not see the beautification in or the nice rose bushes and stuff like that but operationally lanes will be open and working to capacity on 14 of those projects,” Lorens said.

Cox Media Group