Macon sits on the Ocmulgee River at the fall line in the middle of Georgia, and three interstates meet here. I-75 runs north-south through the city toward Atlanta and Florida, I-16 begins at a downtown interchange and heads southeast toward Savannah, and I-475 forms a western bypass for through traffic. Eisenhower Parkway crosses the south side, Gray Highway heads northeast toward Jones County, Riverside Drive runs north along the river toward the shopping and office areas, and Vineville Avenue runs northwest from downtown through historic neighborhoods.
I-75 through Macon carries a constant stream of freight trucks and heavy holiday and spring-break traffic headed to Florida, and the I-75 and I-16 interchange near downtown is a known bottleneck. Riverside Drive, Zebulon Road and Eisenhower Parkway are lined with shopping centers and back up at rush hour. Mercer University Drive and Pio Nono Avenue carry heavy local traffic. A breakdown on I-75 among the trucks is dangerous, so getting to an exit and a lot comes first.
Middle Georgia Regional Airport sits south of the city, while most airline travelers drive to Atlanta. Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins is the region's largest employer, and thousands of families commute down I-75 and US 129 every day. Macon Transit buses cover the city, but most people drive, and many rural addresses in Bibb and the surrounding counties sit on long county roads. Each spring the cherry blossom festival draws visitors downtown and to the parks, adding event traffic and closed streets for a few weeks. Outside those weeks, the city's neighborhoods are generally easy for a mechanic to reach from the interstates.