Telecommuting and teleworking can be key factors in achieving both. The region's rapid growth was fueled, in part, by a world-class transportation infrastructure. That growth, however, outstripped efforts to maintain infrastructure, chiefly adequate highways, leading to increased congestion and worsening air quality. At the same time, the cumulative impact of past and current growth remains to be addressed by building more schools, more water treatment facilities, and the like. More daunting, most of the solutions to the region's congestion and air quality challenges will require years, even decades, to achieve.
Electronic routes are one alternative.
Twice in the recent past, Atlantans have had to learn new ways to work and live. Much of the telecommuting was possible because metro Atlanta is a very large geographical area that nonetheless does not require long-distance calling. Unusual is the organization today that has not invested heavily in personal computers, local area networks, and more advanced telecommunications capabilities. Connectivity from and to remote sites. Costs for hardware, especially personal computers, have dropped sharply, making the case for telecommuting even more attractive financially.