The ATL: new regional transit system (Atlanta, Douglas: purchasing, taxi, tax return)

[primaltech]

Kind of like back when MARTA operated C-Tran. C-Tran was just a brand, a livery on the bus. MARTA was the operator of it. The drivers I believe were MARTA employees. The operations and logistics end was all the same as the rest of MARTA.

This will be kinda like that. A massive-scale version of that. Separating the operator's name from the product brand.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by primaltech

Kind of like back when MARTA operated C-Tran. C-Tran was just a brand, a livery on the bus. MARTA was the operator of it. The drivers I believe were MARTA employees. The operations and logistics end was all the same as the rest of MARTA.

This will be kinda like that. A massive-scale version of that. Separating the operator's name from the product brand.

I was confused as to why you mentioned MARTA keeping it's logo, then saying it's buses and trains would be rebranded.

[magnetar]

The most important transit project to people who live in Atlanta is the Beltline. Followed by multiple other transit projects. After that is expanding transit outside the city. I don’t particularly care if these places vote to keep themselves stuck in traffic all day and I certainly don’t want my tax money going to a new logo just to try to change their minds.

Anyone who won’t ride MARTA because it’s called MARTA isn’t going to have their mind changed by a new name. Because a new name isn’t going to make non-white people stop riding the bus, and sadly that’s the reason there are some people who won’t ride MARTA.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by magnetar

The most important transit project to people who live in Atlanta is the Beltline. Followed by multiple other transit projects. After that is expanding transit outside the city. I don’t particularly care if these places vote to keep themselves stuck in traffic all day and I certainly don’t want my tax money going to a new logo just to try to change their minds.

Anyone who won’t ride MARTA because it’s called MARTA isn’t going to have their mind changed by a new name. Because a new name isn’t going to make non-white people stop riding the bus, and sadly that’s the reason there are some people who won’t ride MARTA.

I attended More MARTA planning meetings, where there were residents who wanted to see more local buses or other projects prioritized over BeltLine transit. But for myself, I view expansion of the Streetcar (which includes BeltLine transit) as the most important.

[oobanks]

Originally Posted by magnetar

The most important transit project to people who live in Atlanta is the Beltline. Followed by multiple other transit projects. After that is expanding transit outside the city. I don’t particularly care if these places vote to keep themselves stuck in traffic all day and I certainly don’t want my tax money going to a new logo just to try to change their minds.

Anyone who won’t ride MARTA because it’s called MARTA isn’t going to have their mind changed by a new name. Because a new name isn’t going to make non-white people stop riding the bus, and sadly that’s the reason there are some people who won’t ride MARTA.

Great Point

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by cqholt

I was confused as to why you mentioned MARTA keeping it's logo, then saying it's buses and trains would be rebranded.

I meant MARTA the agency. I presume would keep its logo and everything. Probably. It's been the same since MARTA has existed, so I don't see why they'd change that.

And hopefully MARTA's name and logo will still show up in some places, just smaller and down at the bottom. Sort of like when you look at a Breeze card, 'Breeze' is the big name in the middle, the brand of it, and MARTA logo is smaller and down at the bottom corner.

Originally Posted by magnetar

Anyone who won’t ride MARTA because it’s called MARTA isn’t going to have their mind changed by a new name.

I tend to disagree. I think you underestimate many people's clueless stupidity.

After all, these are some of the same mouth-breathers who hate Obamacare, but then are upset when someone tries to take away their Affordable Care Act.

[oobanks]

Originally Posted by primaltech

I meant MARTA the agency. I presume would keep its logo and everything. Probably. It's been the same since MARTA has existed, so I don't see why they'd change that.

And hopefully MARTA's name and logo will still show up in some places, just smaller and down at the bottom. Sort of like when you look at a Breeze card, 'Breeze' is the big name in the middle, the brand of it, and MARTA logo is smaller and down at the bottom corner.



I tend to disagree. I think you underestimate many people's clueless stupidity.

After all, these are some of the same mouth-breathers who hate Obamacare, but then are upset when someone tries to take away their Affordable Care Act.

Lol, now there is a Fair amount of Truth to that!

[cqholt]

What I like about this, is that it sort of hits the reset button so to speak, erases all the stigma and identity politics or specific perceptions regarding any specific brand or whatever, and gets back to the very basics of what transit is, and why we need it, and what form it needs to take- which is the form of a unified regional system that connects everyone in the most efficient way, regardless of county lines.

I like that ATL sounds like it would be guaranteed to be that, regardless of referendums. The county referendums will simply determine if counties get more and better transit, and mass transit. But even if there's no referendums ever held or if they all fail (very unlikely), we'll still end up (by 5 years from now or whenever), with one single transit system that serves the whole metro. That's such a massive improvement over the situation now. Re-branding is a drop in the bucket compared to that.

Just wait until the referendums start going to the voters. You'll people like Benita Dobb saying it's just MARTA in disguise and MARTA is coming to Cobb, Cherokee, etc to take your tax dollars to Atlanta.

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by cqholt

Just wait until the referendums start going to the voters. You'll people like Benita Dobb saying it's just MARTA in disguise and MARTA is coming to Cobb, Cherokee, etc to take your tax dollars to Atlanta.

Then, heck, fine, the referendum will fail then, and Cherokee County won't get mass transit. I doubt it would fail in Cobb, but even if does, fine. Whatever the voters want or don't want (for whatever their reasons), great, that's democracy. (As long as we do get a vote.)

Meanwhile, for my area where we do have transit, the bus nearest to me that goes down Cumberland Pkwy, will be the same transit system as the one in your neighborhood in Kirkwood.

There are a ton of efficiencies/synergies to be had there. Both behind the scenes operational stuff, and also to the end user, who is just looking to get from Point A to Point B, in an efficient and simplified way.

Even if transit in Cobb is still under-funded and neglected, we're still going to have Sunday service soon, we still have some transit (at least as much as we do now, and I'm sure more with time), and that would be improved if it was all one in the same with what we now know as MARTA in Fulton. Like, there wouldn't need to be a transfer station, between ATL and ATL. There would just be an ATL bus transit station in the Cumberland area somewhere, just like there's planned to be one at Moore's Mill, etc.

The symbolic, intangible and perception gains would be huge.

[primaltech]

No argument from me that we need more and better transit, and that we need to hold a referendum for a sales tax, and it needs to pass. We're on the same page there. And which I'm optimistic about, in the coming years.

I'm just saying, in the meantime, let's at least consolidate and coordinate what all we do have, the best that we can. And let's at least not have it be different systems and different brands in the middle of the same metro area, simply because there's a political boundary between different counties.

I am just guessing on this as we have not seen anything, but if CCT is branded the same thing as MARTA, use the same apps, maps, routing, planning, etc. Total and full seamless coordination as much as possible as one system, then I don't see why more MARTA routes can't go into Cobb, and more CCT routes can't cross into Fulton, as long as they're trading about equally.

But I think all that will soon be moot, as I feel like if this passes, within 5 years or so, CCT and GCT won't exist anymore, and MARTA will operate all transit in both. And possibly in other counties as well.