Page 48 - 2021 Atlanta Auto Show Guide

WSB’s SkyCopter

By J.W. Southwick
Director of Marketing
& Social Media
MAADA

tlanta is the home of many well-known things. It’s the River, B 98.5 FM, and KISS 104.1 FM. And Atlanta’s commut-
home of Coca Cola. It’s the home of the world’s larg- ers also get the chance to aid the reporting. “Traffic Troop-
Aest drive-in restaurant, The Varsity. It’s the home of ers” can call in to alert the WSB team to incidents they have
the College Football Hall of Fame. It’s also home to some spotted, adding extra eyes in support of the effort.
of the worst traffic in all of America. The city has often been
the butt of jokes due to the seemingly endless congestion Terrestrial radio and television aren’t the only ways WSB
that clogs our roadways. A quick search of the Internet will gets traffic updates out to the masses. After all, this is the
yield such quips as “Atlanta is an hour away from Atlanta,” or digital age, so reports are also tweeted out on their radio
“driving in Atlanta is an extreme sport.” If you’ve spent any and TV Twitter accounts, as well as the AJC account. But
amount of time behind the wheel in the Metro Atlanta area, wait, there’s more! They also have the Triple Team Traffic
you’ve likely got a war story or two to tell. It’s okay. You’re not Alerts app, which users can download and receive updates
alone. We’ve all been there. tailored specifically to their respective commutes. The level
of coverage available to Atlanta’s drivers is truly impressive.
The good news is that Atlanta commuters truly aren’t alone,
not when it comes to finding ways to navigate the motor- With as much traffic as Atlantans experience on a day-to-
ing madness from day to day. There’s a round-the-clock day basis, you can easily understand why it takes so many
operation at work, scoping out the traffic situation from the boots on the ground to keep commuters informed. But
ground and in the air. Whether you’re on I-285, I-75, I-85, or some of those boots are in the air, flying overhead to scope
400, WSB’s Triple Team Traffic is just an arm’s length away, out the situation from a wider perspective. WSB’s SkyCopter
ready for you to punch them up on your vehicle’s radio or is able to travel across town quickly, avoiding the backups
infotainment system. Once you’ve got them dialed up, you they might get caught in, adding another layer of reporting
get regular updates from all over the Metro Atlanta area, that can help motorists avoid trouble.
keeping you up to speed on the latest snafus that can gum-
up the works. Smilin’ Mark McKay spends a great deal of time looking
down on Atlanta’s roadways from the SkyCopter, and he’s
Over a dozen people make up the WSB traffic team, mon- been reporting on traffic here since 1990. Working full-time
itoring the roads around the area and then feeding traffic as a sports reporter/anchor for CNN beginning in 1985, Smi-
information out to the public via numerous channels. Triple lin’ picked up a part-time radio gig with Z-93 as a disc jock-
Team Traffic updates go out on 95.5 FM (AM 750) every six ey, which led him into traffic reporting. He joined WSB in
minutes during weekday rush hours and every ten minutes 2001 when he was brought onboard their team by the late
on Channel 2 Action News during their morning newscasts. Captain Herb Emory. He sees what he does as more than
There’s also several reports per hour that go out on 97.1 The just basic traffic reporting. “There’s a real sense of commu-

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