Ridership is still down about a million monthly riders compared to pre-pandemic numbers. In 2019, the MARTA Board adopted a sequencing plan that was codified into an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between MARTA and COA in 2020. Cleveland Ave: improvements to the existing Route 78 between East Point Station and Browns Mill Golf Course, Metropolitan Parkway: improvements to the existing Route 95 between West End Station and Hapeville, Peachtree Road: improvements to the existing Route 110 between Brookhaven Station and Arts Center Station, linking dense neighborhoods with key employment centers in midtown and downtown, North Avenue BRT Phase I: connecting the BeltLines Eastside Trail and Poncey-Highland to North Avenue Station, Bankhead Station improvements: lengthening the platform to accommodate eight-car trains and significant growth in the neighborhoods surrounding the station, Streetcar East Extension: an approximately two-mile route along the Atlanta BeltLine connecting the existing Atlanta Streetcar to Ponce de Leon Avenue through popular intown neighborhoods Inman Park, Old Fourth Ward and Poncey-Highland, Greenbriar Transit Center: a multi-modal transit hub connecting local bus service to high-capacity transit on Campbellton Road, Campbellton Road high-capacity transit: approximately 5 miles of service from Oakland City Station to the Greenbriar Transit Center, Clifton Corridor Phase 1: light rail linking Lindbergh Center Station to Emory University, Emory Hospital, the Centers for Disease Control, Childrens Healthcare, and Veterans Administration Hospital, Southwest BeltLine: approximately 3.5 miles of light rail service from Oakland City Station to Westview Drive near I-20, where it would connect to the future western extension of the Atlanta Streetcar, Northeast BeltLine: approximately 3.5 miles of light rail service between Ponce City Market and Lindbergh Center Station/Armour Yard area. And decisions had to be made. , Better local bus service will do far more for the Atlanta community than BeltLine Rail could., has committed to establishing a network of bus-only lanes and installing upgrades like transit signal priority on city streets by 2022. We will have more and better transit options to get to job centers, colleges and universities, hospitals, parks and neighborhoods across Atlanta. The south bus loop has reopened at Edgewood-Candler Park Station. Of the 17 projects approved, MARTA is set to break ground this summer on the first project, the Summerhill bus rapid transitline along Hank Aaron Drive and Capitol Avenue in Downtown. Seven years later, some local elected officials and members of the public seem less than enthused with the transit agencys pared down, bus-heavy agenda, which one observer nicknamed Just a Bit More MARTA, at a public update meeting April 20. MARTA intends the redesign to be budget neutral, meaning it doesnt plan to add additional bus service as part of the initiative. MARTA has also committed to upgrading 1,000 bus shelters within its entire service area over the next five years. ATLANTA _ The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) and the City of Atlanta will host three public updates to share information and take questions and comments about the More MARTA Atlanta Program. March 22, 2023 Most of the work over the past four years has been happening behind the scenes, said Heather Alhadeff, assistant general manager of planning at MARTA. MARTA, which took over the streetcar from Atlanta in 2018, says more people will ride if the line goes more places. The audit would also review federal funds received and spent by More MARTA to date, including federal COVID-19 relief funds. I havent been around long and I dont have all that history I would just say that projects take time, said Rocha. But Sumlin says the feedback hes heard from his community is that many projects that survived MARTAs resequencing are intended for tourists and transplants. Please see None of these buses have signal priority or anything else that would actually enhance their mobility.. The More MARTA Atlanta program is aligned with the Atlanta Transportation Plan and the Citys efforts to build upon a layered, integrated, regional transportation network. Interestingly, maps from the early 1960s detailing proposed MARTA rail lines show a connection between Lindbergh and Emory, but that rail spur was never built. 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Given the resources at hand thanks to More MARTA, the slow pace of capital expansion projects, and the imperative to rebuild confidence in the transit system after the pandemic, increasing the budget for bus service in tandem with the network redesign looks like the surest path to give riders significant improvements while the 2016 referendum is still fresh in voters minds. DeKalb County officials are considering a separate tax referendum to fund improvements in the rest of that county (a DeKalb contingent recently flew to Minneapolis to check out that regions transit), and Gwinnett County has already scheduled a vote next year to finally invite MARTA into its borders. The audit would be overseen and paid for by the city governments Department of Finance. So far, no BRT projects have broken ground. The Atlanta City Council on Monday approved a financial audit of a MARTA program that was funded by a 2016 half-penny sales tax. We dont need to look at transit as, Oh, this vehicle needs to be a train. We need to look at it as, Okay, this is a service that runs every 15 minutes or less, and this is wonderful for our community. He says the bus network redesign is a chance to start thinking holistically about transit, Hope in Trying Times: A Conversation with Transit Industry Leaders, Whats Going on With Transit Service at the Seven Highest Ridership U.S. Cities? You can watch here: https://bit.ly/MARTAPublicStream, To contact MARTA directly with feedback, email: townhall@ItsMARTA.com, Your email address will not be published. We have answered these questions, and instead of accepting the answers, Council is playing politics by demanding a full performance review of decisions made by previous MARTA and City of Atlanta leaders. The program of projects is funded by an additional half . No, it does not, said Stephany Fisher, spokesperson for MARTA, in an email. All that is missing is the political will.. Most of the work over the past four years has been happening behind the scenes, said, Heather Alhadeff, assistant general manager of planning at MARTA, Theres a lot of repair that needs to happen with a 40-year-old system, she said. The More MARTA Atlanta program is funded by a 2016 half-penny local sales tax. Read about our mission, goals, and accomplishments. An interactive tool that measures the state of transit equity in major U.S. cities. Shipman said he didnt believe any projects would need to be delayed as the City is financing and overseeing the audit. The program was first approved in 2016, when 71% of Atlanta voters cast their ballots in support of an additional half-penny sales tax to support expansion and improvements in the City. font-size: 25px; Atlanta residents are eager for more transit options. According to Bakari Height, co-founder of the grassroots action group MARTA Army, things havent changed dramatically for the average rider since 2016. The More MARTA program is funded by a half-penny sales tax approved by Atlanta voters in 2016 specifically to build new rail, streetcar extensions, new bus lines and new stations. Board Meetings Thursday, April 27, 2023, beginning at 9:30 a.m. 36 North Decatur Road / Virginia Highland, Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) Program, MARTA's Transportation Assistance Program for the Homeless, Cleveland Ave & Metropolitan Parkway Arterial Rapid Transit (ART), Campbellton Community Investment Corridor BRT. program. MARTA and the city of Atlanta will host public updates to share information and take questions and comments about the More MARTA Atlanta Program. Four years after the More MARTA referendum, what improvements are now tangible for Atlanta transit riders, and what can riders expect to see in the next four? More MARTA Atlanta is the city of Atlanta's largest transit investment in four decades. MARTAs upcoming bus network redesign is a promising way to generate significant service improvements in the near future, but so far the agency doesnt plan to increase the budget for bus operations as part of the initiative. 21, 2023 at 7:23 AM PDT | Updated: Mar. Kotak said the project list ultimately came down to what MARTA and the community thought was most feasible in terms of increasing ridership, spending the money well, pulling down federal funds, and a lot of equity and environmental concerns.. Tier I are projects that will be delivered in a first phase. Tejas Kotak, transit chair of the Georgia Sierra Club, believes that MARTA is on an upward trajectory overall. A new MARTA rail car as unveiled in a December 2022 event. font-size: 19px; City residents passed an additional half-penny tax for "More MARTA" in November 2017. Kotak said the project list ultimately came, down to what MARTA and the community thought was most feasible in terms of increasing ridership, spending the money well, pulling down federal funds, and a lot of equity and environmental concerns., This effort will be key in creating a more comfortable rider experience, says Height. . | Learn more If all goes according to schedule, the first major capital investment will be unveiled in 2023 the Metropolitan Parkway Arterial Rapid Transit, a BRT-lite project which will feature buses that run frequently, with transit signal priority, queue jumps, and enhanced bus stops. MARTA, CITY OF ATLANTA HOST PUBLIC UPDATES ON MORE MARTA ATLANTA PROGRAM.