MARTA transit plan includes 21 miles of light rail (Atlanta, Marietta: association, affordable housing)

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by cqholt

https://www.ajc.com/news/local-govt-...3fgVLRp5knYpN/

I'm a little behind on things. Is this what they plan on actually doing, starting work soon? Or is this the list of things they are going to study to decide if they will do them at a later date?

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by samiwas1

I'm a little behind on things. Is this what they plan on actually doing, starting work soon? Or is this the list of things they are going to study to decide if they will do them at a later date?

This will be MoreMARTA recommended plan for MARTA Board to vote on.

[-thomass]

Let’s get it done. It’s about time.

[cqholt]

Atlanta will finally have a transit system to be proud of!

MARTA would spend more than half a billion dollars to build light rail along the Atlanta Beltline under a final transit expansion plan unveiled Thursday.

The agency also would build light rail along the Clifton Corridor to Emory University and along Campbellton Road in southwest Atlanta. And it would extend the city’s streetcar line west to the Atlanta University Center area and east to the Beltline.

The $2.7 billion blueprint for Atlanta’s transit future is up for approval by the MARTA Board of Directors Oct. 4. It varies significantly from a preliminary proposal unveiled last May, offering more money for the Beltline and less for the Clifton Corridor, among other changes. But it does not provide all of the local money needed to complete either of those projects.

In a letter to Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, MARTA officials called the plan “an important milestone,” but said more funding is needed to meet all of Atlanta’s transit needs.

“As the past months and years of public outreach have clearly demonstrated, there is an incredible appetite for more transit in and around Atlanta,” they wrote. “The More MARTA Atlanta program will go a long way towards addressing the pent-up demand, particularly for the core of the system, but there are other quality transit projects that will require additional funding in the years to come.”

As in the initial proposal, the final plan includes $370.2 million to build seven miles of light rail along the northeast and southwest portion of the proposed 22-mile loop around central Atlanta. The final plan adds $200 million as a down payment on another eight miles of rail along the northeast, southeast and western portions of the Beltline.

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The extra money would not be enough to complete the eight miles of rail. But MARTA hopes private partners will step forward to help cover the remaining costs of those sections.

MARTA has unveiled plans for light rail, bus rapid transit, arterial rapid transit and other improvements across Atlanta.
The agency reduced proposed funding for the Clifton Corridor by more than $150 million, counting on Emory and other private entities to help cover the cost. The plan would provide $250 million in funding for the Clifton Corridor, plus another $100 million “contingent upon securing full local funding for the project” from other partners, according to a letter from MARTA officials to Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms dated Thursday.

MARTA also added the western extension of the streetcar to the final project list. And it changed its plans for Campbellton Road.

The initial proposal would have built a bus rapid transit line along Campbellton before eventually building light rail. The final plan skips the bus service and focuses solely on light rail.

The final plan also includes $200 million for renovation of existing rail stations – up from $125 million in the initial proposal.

In addition to the light rail lines, the final project list also includes 13 miles of bus rapid transit lines, three arterial rapid transit routes and other improvements.

The release of the plan follows months of debate about how MARTA should spend the proceeds of a transit sales tax approved by Atlanta voters in 2016. The agency had $11.5 billion worth of projects to choose from. But the sales tax is expected to generate just $2.5 billion over the next 40 years.

MARTA is counting on the federal government to pay half the construction cost of most projects.

https://www.ajc.com/news/local-govt-...bAw0e3KNBBIUI/

[-thomass]

Nice! With a stop at turner field. I means Gsu stadium

[cqholt]

Updated Google Map of the Proposed Projects
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1o2...Po&usp=sharing

[J2rescue]

I think this is a great step toward having adequate transit in the city - Much better than what Marta initially proposed.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by cqholt

Atlanta will finally have a transit system to be proud of!



https://www.ajc.com/news/local-govt-...bAw0e3KNBBIUI/

If I'm reading this map right, I really don't understand why they would put a "downpayment" on duplicating HRT to Buckhead and to Bankhead. It would make so much more sense to put that money on completing the Southeast segment.

[primaltech]

I like it a bit better. I like how the Campbellton rail line can now seamlessly run up thru Grant Park and up to Piedmont Park.

I'm curious how good the new bus service on Peachtree Rd will be, and what that will look like. Full on BRT in its own lanes would be better, but maybe they'll at least do signal priority and stuff, with nice stations.

Also, I hope eventually there's a Krog St infill station (especially makes sense w/ the Beltline rail), and I hope the Green Line can get extended to the Moores Mill transit center, or something. Some kind of NW line from Midtown or Lindbergh, would be great.

[primaltech]

Cobb is doing a transit study, so maybe that forthcoming plan will fill in the blanks for western Buckhead as well.