Whats up with traffic today?

Submitted by jamesland7 t3_yfnqk8 in boston

Everywhere i drove around 8:45 this morning had virtually no trafffic. No traffic at the JFK/uMass roundabout. No traffic entering the 93 tunnel, no traffic getting on Storrow. Is this just how things should be when everything works right, or is something happening causing people not to drive today?

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Funkybeatzzz t1_iu49g70 wrote

Friday has been the lightest traffic day lately. A lot people work from home on Fridays now.

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dante662 t1_iu49gny wrote

As the other commenter said, Friday is WFH day for hybrid folks who only get one or two WFH days a week.

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Reducing the number of cars by as little as 10% has gigantic impact on traffic (just as increasing by 10% can be crippling).

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dg8882 t1_iu4ans0 wrote

Tuesdays and Fridays seem to be lighter traffic

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marktheman0 t1_iu4b506 wrote

As others said, Friday is more of a WFH day for a lot of people but today did seem quieter than usual for a Friday at least on my line on the commuter rail

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OmniaCausaFiunt t1_iu4b9r2 wrote

Replying to Funkybeatzzz (#283,313)

It's always been the lightest day for a long time. I loved coming into the office on Fridays for that reason, but starting this school year I had to WFH Fridays because of my kids' afterschool program didn't have availability that day.

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N8710 t1_iu4bi0n wrote

I noticed the same thing, thought I would be late when I left today. Was 30 minutes early to work.

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Funkybeatzzz t1_iu4cqag wrote

Replying to OmniaCausaFiunt (#283,694)

I think you may be repressing pre-pandemic memories. Friday traffic, especially the evening commute, was always the worst in my experience. Everyone leaving the city for the weekend for the beach or mountains I think was to blame.

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HelpfulFlyingpig t1_iu4cvlf wrote

That’s interesting, I heard on the radio this morning it was on hour on 93 from 95 to the Zakim. Maybe that was a crash that eventually cleared.

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bacon_and_eggs t1_iu4dcp4 wrote

I had to stop in to the office today and left at 6. 630 and 93 southbound coming into the city was pretty full, I was surprised at how many cars there were.

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marktheman0 t1_iu4dg5o wrote

Replying to PLS-Surveyor-US (#283,924)

Rather them than me. Salem is a nice enough little town if you’re sat in the beer garden at Notch by the coast there with a few beers but nothing could possess me (see what I did there?) to go any time around Halloween

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moosewithamuffin t1_iu4ed7f wrote

COD MW22 released today. Probably lots of people “out sick” today.

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BHKbull t1_iu4fg56 wrote

It’s friday. I had mostly no traffic, right up until Rt 2 at Alewife.

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SirPercivalChang t1_iu4gszq wrote

Yesterday there were the most people I've seen at my commuter rail stop since before COVID, easily 100 waiting at 6am. Today there were 14.

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moosewithamuffin t1_iu4hba6 wrote

Replying to winter_bluebird (#284,797)

Considering BF2042 was a massive flop and COD is actually getting good now that Microsoft bought them out IDK lots of people online. I wish I took today off but I have an interview this afternoon I can’t miss

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outsideroutsider t1_iu4hepc wrote

I was wondering about this. I go from Brookline to Brockton and the drive today was smooth sailing.

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kajana141 t1_iu4knws wrote

Just wait until the afternoon. Friday afternoons and evening are a nightmare.

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not_a_dr_ t1_iu4l4f1 wrote

In addition to what's been said I know that my school district had a late start day today, possible some others did as well, which would take the school drop offs buses etc. out of the pre 9-AM commuting equation.

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patwm11 t1_iu4l53b wrote

JFK/ umass rotary?

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smashy_smashy t1_iu4obve wrote

Woburn to Sullivan Square normally takes me 20-25 minutes on a Friday. Today it took me just over 40 minutes leaving at 8:40am. I was specifically surprised that there was way more traffic today that a typical Friday.

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nattarbox t1_iu4q9j9 wrote

Everyone is at home having a late breakfast and getting ready to enjoy the crisp fall day except you.

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sLpFhaWK t1_iu4s1fb wrote

It's Friday, people don't wanna commute and WFH on Fridays. Which is why I go to the office. I go in, do my 3 hrs and goto "lunch" head home, and log in from there to finish the day. =)

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SomeLightAssPlay t1_iu4zy32 wrote

this sub hilarious, top 6 comments near verbatim saying the same thing

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tacknosaddle t1_iu5lfhq wrote

Replying to CrashBangs (#285,298)

Pre-pandemic if we were going away for the weekend I'd work from home Friday and would usually try to cut out around 3 pm and it would always be bad. I figure that there were usually a fair number of people like me that ordinarily wouldn't be on the highways heading out of town adding to traffic volume.

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member_member5thNov t1_iu5pq5e wrote

Replying to dyslexicbunny (#292,445)

And honestly it seems like it starts going to shit by lunch.

93 and Pike at least start getting “evening” traffic so early.

Is everyone trying to get to Maine or the Cape at the same time or some fucking thing? Early lunches in town? Friday errand day for fucking everyone?

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Patient_Estimate3284 t1_iu5s3pn wrote

Today I had one of the easiest bus commutes ever… everyone seems to be enjoying the ridiculously nice Fall we’ve been having.

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dante662 t1_iu5wfpc wrote

Replying to steamedfarts (#292,338)

Same reason everyone does, they don't want to have to rely on someone else for their trip home.

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Need to run out the door to make a specific commuter train, and if it's cancelled, might be hours of waiting or shuttle buses. Sure, doesn't happen that often...but everyone would rather be in their own car, with their own sense of control over the situation.

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It doesn't help that we spent the past 2.5 years beating people over the head with COVID and social distancing. Huge numbers of people are still never going to get into a crowded elevator ever again, let alone a subway train. Shit, I see people wearing masks walking down the street, outside, alone. Of course people would rather drive.

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And that doesn't even get into the high profile media reports of random nutcases attacking people on public transit. Everyone's on edge.

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BToxic_personality t1_iu6tyw4 wrote

Woah I’ve been experiencing the exact opposite problem. Fridays have been the worst day for traffic. No matter what time the JFK/Umass rotary is backed up and so is the intersection at mass and cass. Always thought Friday is WFH day like everyone is saying but hasn’t been my experience

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VerticalLines t1_iu6vpwz wrote

As a Bostonian who recently moved to LA, this gave me fomo.

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pigeononapear t1_iu6vwyb wrote

Interesting, I felt like traffic was slightly heavier this morning than it normally is on 1S. Usually on Fridays I’m not in stop-and-go on the Tobin, but today I was.

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-Slan- t1_iu8zmhl wrote

while there is next to no traffic come friday mornings... the traffic is straight up injected with steriods returning upon leaving work

honest its downright baffling, no people on the road in the am but bumper to bumper traffic in the pm

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