Atlantans are driving even more than we did before COVID

Here's some interesting news to consider before hopping into your car for your traffic-plagued commute into the city: We are driving even more than we did before the pandemic.

Why it matters: The lockdown period, when driving plummeted as people sought to "stop the spread," was a unique chance for cities to get a lasting handle on transportation-related emissions.

Driving the news: Average daily vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per capita increased by nearly 17% in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta region between 2019 and this year, according to a new report from StreetLight Data, a transportation analytics firm.

The big picture: Metro Atlanta's driving habits and sprawling land use are decades-long problems that counties and cities — protective of their own fiefdoms — have been reluctant to work together to solve.

• Cobb and Gwinnett are taking steps to invest in alternate ways to get around. Voters in November will be asked to approve a new sales tax to pay for transit projects.

Yes, but: Building projects to address our vehicle-first habits aren't going away any time soon.

• The Georgia Department of Transportation recently unveiled plans to install toll lanes on I-285 through Cobb, Fulton and DeKalb counties — just as its roughly $1 billion overhaul of the I-285 and Ga. 400 interchange winds down.

Zoom out: VMT per capita increased the most in McAllen, Texas (+67.6%); Boise City, Idaho (+57.8%) and El Paso, Texas (+42%).

• The metros with the biggest reductions in VMT per capita are concentrated in California, like Los Angeles (-16.6%), San Francisco (-13.2%) and San Jose (-12.3%).

Between the lines: While higher VMT tends to mean more vehicle-related emissions, it can also be a sign of changes generally perceived as positive, like more economic activity.

• Lower VMT can be a sign of successful public transit or cycling projects — or an indication that lots of people are still working hybrid or remotely.

Go deeper: Change in Atlanta travel times ; Uber, Waymo to debut driverless cars in Atlanta in 2025