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Published Sunday, February 14, 2010 in Local

There's love... in the HOV lane

By Nichole Golden

The Newnan Times-Herald

Sharpsburg residents Rick and Marilyn Lynn first met at a Swingin' Medallions concert -- but love blossomed for them in the HOV lane.

The Lynns, who will celebrate their second wedding anniversary March 14, really got to know one another while sharing the daily commute to and from Atlanta.

Marilyn, who lived in Peachtree City when she met Rick, said they discovered that they were driving "about the same way at the same time."

Marilyn works in Buckhead for a management consulting firm, and Rick in midtown Atlanta for a law firm.

They decided to carpool together, and won a handful of gift cards through the Commuter Rewards program of the Clean Air Campaign. The Georgia non-profit works to improve air quality and reduce traffic congestion.

The 40-mile drive gave the couple time to really communicate with each other. "To say carpooling accelerated our romance would be an understatement," said Rick. "Spending an hour commuting each way, five days a week, well, you just never know where that might lead."

Before meeting Rick, Marilyn would listen to books on tape during her drive to work. Now the books on tape are reserved for longer car trips. "He got me into country music," she said.

The two married on a very rainy spring day in 2008. "We eloped," said Marilyn. That evening, a tornado struck downtown Atlanta making for a memorable wedding date. They have been told that lots of rain is lucky for a wedding day.

Leaving one car behind in Coweta translates into a savings of about $2,000 each year for the Lynns.

Being able to use the HOV lane for cars with multiple occupants is an added bonus especially on congested mornings like Friday. "The connector was horrible," said Marilyn.

The Lynns still commute together most days.

"We continue to get to know each other better because we focus on each other while in the car, as opposed to having a lot of distractions once we get home," said Rick. "It's also nice to have the time to work through plans for the evening or the weekend, to talk about vacation plans or retirement, goal setting... something we might not take time to do otherwise."

Marilyn feels certain that Rick has something special planned for Valentine's Day, and she has been looking into purchasing him a "Big Green Egg," a combination smoker/ griller, as a gift.

The Lynns hate those days when their schedules force them to drive separately to work.

"It's been great," said Marilyn about finding love in the HOV lane.

For more information on finding a carpooling partner, visit cleanaircampaign.org and click on "Commuters."

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