The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority’s (MARTA) board of directors recently voted to approve the More MARTA Atlanta program, the region’s largest transit investment in more than four decades.
In 2016, residents voted to approve a half-penny sales tax. The tax will partially fund the approximately $2.7 billion program. The remainder of the funding will be from public and private investment.
Voters were most supportive on Campbellton Road and along the BeltLine, in the Clifton Corridor.
The program includes additional fixed-route bus service, two new transit centers, 26 miles of arterial rapid transit, 22 miles of light-rail transit, 14 miles of bus rapid transit and upgrades to existing rail stations. Expanded bus service already has begun.
“As Atlanta’s population grows, so must our investment in equitable and accessible transportation options,” Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said.” With development plans spanning from Greenbriar in Southwest Atlanta to Emory University, today’s MARTA vote helps move us closer towards becoming One Atlanta.”
The next phase in the program includes developing costs and schedules for the individual projects and securing additional funding.
MARTA also plans to educate riders on various programs.
MARTA General Manager and CEO Jeffrey Parker referred to the program as a “major and transformational down payment on our future commitment to the city and to the region.”