Brookings Institution: Atlanta one of the ten worst metro areas for transit

[muxBuppie]

So we got beat by every other sunbelt city, even Austin and Houston? Wow.


Wait a damn minute. Hawaii is above DC,NYC Chicago,Etc? This list blows.

[muxBuppie]

Atlanta does NOT sprawl into Tennessee either. That's just dumb.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by muxBuppie

Atlanta does NOT sprawl into Tennessee either. That's just dumb.

Maybe not, but if nothing is done to curb the sprawl, it will. Part of metro Atlanta sprawls into Alabama.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by NuclearDensity

Cobb County is anti-tax. As a Cobb resident, I can tell you that as density increases and traffic gets slower people are really starting to embrace the thought of rail solutions. I think the transit tax next year will get a nod from at least 45% of Cobb voters.

Cobb growth collides with anti-tax views *| ajc.com

I am not sure whether the Hwy-41 corridor in Cobb County can lure enough car riders to reduce the pressure on I-75 significantly as much of the traffic comes from Cherokee County.

This line will do nothing unless there is a direct MARTA rail link from the Cumberland area to either Midtown Arts Center (roughly following I-75) or Dunwoody Station (roughly following I-285)

Amazing that commute times down I-75 have more than tripled over the last 10 years. Maybe a better idea is to run heavy rail down the center of I-75 from Kennesaw to Cumberland. That way the car riders would see the train pass them at 70 MPH several times each morning as the cars creep along.

I'm one of those Cobb County residents who would be more than willing to pay the tax for a rail line. I would be more than happy to see MARTA expand into Kennesaw, where I live.

However, it is not just the tax some people have a problem with, although it is a large barrier. With the taxes, I notice some people would rather pay more and more money for gasoline and longer commutes than pay taxes. I think in the eyes of some people, the attitude is "at least it's my money and not the government's money". What's interesting is that government money helps pay for the roads.

The other barrier I'm talking about is the attitude towards mass transit, and especially towards MARTA. When I was younger, I was dealing with the shock of not having a car. Before that mother and father gave the rides for me. Once I went to college, I was dealing with a shock. I felt like transportation should have been better. However, even among some college students, the attitude towards mass transit was disturbing. The number one thing I heard from people was "crime". Being young and slightly impressionable, I thought "Mass transit brings in crime"? I didn't really understand and in later on I suspected "crime" was codeword for "poor Blacks and poor Hispanics". I was very conflicted by this. I knew I would benefit from MARTA being in Cobb County. I knew it would help ME.

I did more research and found that the anti-MARTA attitude in Cobb County goes way back. At the time, the mentality among some of the residents was that it would bring in the African-American population from Atlanta. Part of the reason it was referred to as Moving Africans Rapidly Through Atlanta. The irony would be that the African-American and Hispanic populations have increased rapidly in the last 20 years in Cobb(and Gwinnett) counties without MARTA really being there.

Personally, I think some(not all) view regional mass transit as something for the "lower class" people and don't want it for that reason.

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

Personally, I think some(not all) view regional mass transit as something for the "lower class" people and don't want it for that reason.

A lot of the racial viewpoints are valid when you're talking about the metro area of the early to later 1980s.

But I think today it's more specific - people don't necessarily see "mass transit" in general as something only the lower class uses... but they do see curb-to-curb bus service as such, as they see that in particular as something only used by "people who can't afford cars" (hence, "lower class"). I did an informal poll amongst my neighbors and coworkers here in West Cobb a while back asking them about their viewpoints on transit, and most of them said they would LOVE to see rail or commuter rail come to this area, provided it was set up for commuters and not "carless people". In other words, if they set up rail stations in industrial parks or off of a highway with large parking lots that people could park in and then hop on the train and take it into the city from there, then they would love to see it. They also supported the current Xpress commuter bus service as it basically works in the same manner.

However, the very mention of curb-to-curb bus service was a definite No-No with every single one of them. They do indeed feel that it brings in lower income people to an area, and everyone was against the idea of that. Even a couple of people I know who own shops said they didn't feel it would open a pool of new employees for them, saying that they would not want to hire someone that had to rely on a bus to get to work on time, etc. Another comment they shared was that in their opinion, "someone who cannot afford a car might be more likely to steal from you".

So suburban areas and mentalities towards transit AS A WHOLE have improved over the years. I think a majority of people will embrace some sort of commuter rail style setup. The idea of MARTA running it turns some people off, and any mention of curb-to-curb bus series will ruin the whole thing if they try to push that off as part of a transit package in areas. Let's just hope some very competent people are hired to get the advertising out for the bill and to explain to people exactly what they will and will not get out of it.

[Marsha33]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

A lot of the racial viewpoints are valid when you're talking about the metro area of the early to later 1980s.

But I think today it's more specific - people don't necessarily see "mass transit" in general as something only the lower class uses... but they do see curb-to-curb bus service as such, as they see that in particular as something only used by "people who can't afford cars" (hence, "lower class"). I did an informal poll amongst my neighbors and coworkers here in West Cobb a while back asking them about their viewpoints on transit, and most of them said they would LOVE to see rail or commuter rail come to this area, provided it was set up for commuters and not "carless people". In other words, if they set up rail stations in industrial parks or off of a highway with large parking lots that people could park in and then hop on the train and take it into the city from there, then they would love to see it. They also supported the current Xpress commuter bus service as it basically works in the same manner.

However, the very mention of curb-to-curb bus service was a definite No-No with every single one of them. They do indeed feel that it brings in lower income people to an area, and everyone was against the idea of that. Even a couple of people I know who own shops said they didn't feel it would open a pool of new employees for them, saying that they would not want to hire someone that had to rely on a bus to get to work on time, etc. Another comment they shared was that in their opinion, "someone who cannot afford a car might be more likely to steal from you".

So suburban areas and mentalities towards transit AS A WHOLE have improved over the years. I think a majority of people will embrace some sort of commuter rail style setup. The idea of MARTA running it turns some people off, and any mention of curb-to-curb bus series will ruin the whole thing if they try to push that off as part of a transit package in areas. Let's just hope some very competent people are hired to get the advertising out for the bill and to explain to people exactly what they will and will not get out of it.

The Emory area has curb-to-curb bus service that's served that area well. I've never heard of shop owners only wanting employees who have cars. It must be a sign of the hard economic times. Employers are petty picky these days.

[waronxmas]

Originally Posted by Marsha33

The Emory area has curb-to-curb bus service that's served that area well. I've never heard of shop owners only wanting employees who have cars. It must be a sign of the hard economic times. Employers are petty picky these days.

Yes, but the type of suburbia that is the Emory area is quite a different beast from Alpharetta, Woodstock and other locales OTP.

[RandyWatson13]

Originally Posted by green_mariner

I'm one of those Cobb County residents who would be more than willing to pay the tax for a rail line. I would be more than happy to see MARTA expand into Kennesaw, where I live.

However, it is not just the tax some people have a problem with, although it is a large barrier. With the taxes, I notice some people would rather pay more and more money for gasoline and longer commutes than pay taxes. I think in the eyes of some people, the attitude is "at least it's my money and not the government's money". What's interesting is that government money helps pay for the roads.

The other barrier I'm talking about is the attitude towards mass transit, and especially towards MARTA. When I was younger, I was dealing with the shock of not having a car. Before that mother and father gave the rides for me. Once I went to college, I was dealing with a shock. I felt like transportation should have been better. However, even among some college students, the attitude towards mass transit was disturbing. The number one thing I heard from people was "crime". Being young and slightly impressionable, I thought "Mass transit brings in crime"? I didn't really understand and in later on I suspected "crime" was codeword for "poor Blacks and poor Hispanics". I was very conflicted by this. I knew I would benefit from MARTA being in Cobb County. I knew it would help ME.

I did more research and found that the anti-MARTA attitude in Cobb County goes way back. At the time, the mentality among some of the residents was that it would bring in the African-American population from Atlanta. Part of the reason it was referred to as Moving Africans Rapidly Through Atlanta. The irony would be that the African-American and Hispanic populations have increased rapidly in the last 20 years in Cobb(and Gwinnett) counties without MARTA really being there.

Personally, I think some(not all) view regional mass transit as something for the "lower class" people and don't want it for that reason.

Very good post