Bus rapid transit line proposed to link Midtown, former Turner Field (Hapeville: college, roofing)

[fourthwarden]

So, a few things are overlapping here. This route is actually following the core section of one of the BRT routes proposed by the city. The route that MARTA is proposing covers a section of the Buckhead to Lakewood route that the city's design studio has proposed. Additionally, there is the planned light rail route from roughly the state capitol to the southern BeltLine that this proposed route overlaps on.


That is all quite similar to how the Northside BRT overlaps with the same planned light rail route from the northern BeltLine to North Ave, and then overlaps with another city-proposed BRT route down past the southern BeltLine.
If I had to guess (and hope), MARTA is both setting up for the city's proposed hashtag BRT routes, as well as prepping areas for planned light rail service.


As for transferring between the wider system and this BRT route, the route passes right by the Georgia State station, as well as transfer options to the streetcar, so there's not really an issue with having to ride all the way through midtown.


I think what's happening here is the start of a layered core network. There are streetcars and light rail planned primarily for within the BeltLine, while there are bus rapid transit lines planned to extend to the city's limits beyond the BeltLine, while overlapping, but not fully duplicating, streetcar routes within the BeltLine.

[cqholt]

Just my idea of what they can be planning, https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_e...bv&usp=sharing. It would show up as a Teal Line on the new high frequency map. I was not able to figure out all 30 stations. Feedback is welcomed.

[tikigod311]

This looks like a great idea. It should hit Georgia State MARTA station too. So it seems to me this would be in lieu of a streetcar running down Hank Aaron as seen in some of those Summerhill development renderings. Maybe it still will if the crosstown crescent line ever comes to be.

I question how useful a lot of the route is, it runs only a few blocks over from the N/S line for a good portion of it. But beefing up transit in the core of the city isn't a bad idea.

[CCATL]

Originally Posted by cqholt

Just my idea of what they can be planning, https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_e...bv&usp=sharing. It would show up as a Teal Line on the new high frequency map. I was not able to figure out all 30 stations. Feedback is welcomed.

This looks like it would be a great route, and get a lot of use. It's a close walk from western Grant Park, as well as much of Summerhill and Northern Peoplestown. There are a lot of destinations that people actually go to as well for both work and recreation. My only comment, like I said earlier, is that it should be extended down Georgia Ave to Zoo Atlanta - then you'll also hit tourists coming from midtown/downtown to the zoo, and it would be a much easier alternative than the current 32 bus if it runs quicker and at higher frequencies.

[cqholt]

Originally Posted by CCATL

This looks like it would be a great route, and get a lot of use. It's a close walk from western Grant Park, as well as much of Summerhill and Northern Peoplestown. There are a lot of destinations that people actually go to as well for both work and recreation. My only comment, like I said earlier, is that it should be extended down Georgia Ave to Zoo Atlanta - then you'll also hit tourists coming from midtown/downtown to the zoo, and it would be a much easier alternative than the current 32 bus if it runs quicker and at higher frequencies.

I do not think running articulated, 60' buses down Georgia Ave is a good idea. This route needs to stick to major thoroughfares and provide frequent service along the corridor, minimizing the meandering along smaller streets. It will provide a closer transit alternative to all the new residential units that are popping up along the route.
Zoo Atlanta needs another solution for visitors, as I think many unfamiliar with this route or riding buses in general get intimidated by possibly missing their stop. If Zoo Atlanta really wants an alternative, run a shuttle from King Memorial to the Zoo via Cherokee Ave, that only makes those stops so visitors feel comfortable using it.

[primaltech]

MARTA is leading a plan for a nearly $50 million project to create a 9.4-mile bus rapid transit line connecting Midtown’s Arts Center station to Summerhill, the 72-acre redevelopment of Turner Field anchored by Georgia State University.

The idea comes as city of Atlanta and Fulton County officials work on long-range transportation plans that could expand transit options several years after the failed T-SPLOST referendum.

It would be the state’s first bus rapid transit, or BRT, loop. Bus rapid transit is a less expensive transportation alternative than light or heavy rail. It features rubber-tired vehicles that usually operate in a dedicated lane.

Bookended by Arts Center Station and Summerhill, the proposed line would run along Juniper and Courtland Streets and Piedmont Avenue, according to MARTA. It may feature up to six BRT vehicles, 30 stations, 16-minute one-way travel times, and 16 hours of daily service.

It would likely use a dedicated lane for a significant portion of the loop, in contrast to the Atlanta Streetcar. BRT may also help to offset a challenge that city and transportation officials have battled for years — connecting the job centers of Midtown and South downtown and students on the Georgia Tech and Georgia State campuses to the previous Turner Field and its surrounding neighborhoods including Summerhill.

For years, those neighborhoods have not been served by MARTA rail. And, the promise of economic development for those neighborhoods has been cut off by the I-20 interchange.

The loop could connect up to 94,000 jobs and average 8,500 daily riders, which is more than double MARTA’s busiest existing bus lines.

“This area has been looking for enhanced connectivity,” said MARTA Assistant General Manager Ben Limmer. “We are excited about the potential for more transit service from Midtown to South Downtown and the new Georgia State Athletic Campus.”

David Nelson, with Carter Developments, one of the GSU partners on the Summerhill project said, “The No. 1 question we get when talking to companies about corporate relocations is ‘What is our connection to transit?’”

Carter is proposing at least 1 million square feet of office space in the Summerhill mixed-use project, otherwise known as the redevelopment of the former Turner Field, once home of the Atlanta Braves, before the team relocated to Cobb County.

“Having a transit line gives us the ability to say we are now connected to downtown and Midtown, and that will be important for any future office users.”

At $48.6 million, the project would still be costly, a little over $5 million per mile. In contrast, however, light rail would cost at least $100 million per mile, and heavy rail more like $250 million per mile, Limmer said.

Cost is always a roadblock to rail expansion. Bus rapid transit also has a shorter construction timeline.

“We like this option as a near-term solution,” Limmer said. “People want solutions now.”

MARTA has led a request for a federal grant through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program, better known as TIGER. MARTA is seeking up to $12.5 million for the BRT loop.

In an October letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, then-Mayor Kasim Reed said the city of Atlanta would commit up to $30 million from its TSPLOST program.

Reed said the goal is a transit alternative for a congested corridor undergoing significant redevelopment.

MARTA expects it may receive an answer from the feds sometime this spring.

First of all... what? 9.4 miles? I guess they mean, half that? As in they're counting both directions?

Just... what in the... heck is this. Juniper and Courtland streets don't need BRT... they're right next to the MARTA line. These aren't transit- underserved areas. That's the heart of Midtown and Downtown. The only area not well served enough by transit is Georgia State Stadium, and all you really need there is a frequent bus shuttle loop service, between there and nearby Georgia State MARTA station.

Why Arts Center? Just... huh? I don't get it.

MARTA... you're weird.

[J2rescue]

Originally Posted by cqholt

Just my idea of what they can be planning, https://drive.google.com/open?id=1_e...bv&usp=sharing. It would show up as a Teal Line on the new high frequency map. I was not able to figure out all 30 stations. Feedback is welcomed.

Thanks!

I love this IF it does in fact it has a dedicated lane for most of the route. However I would be a little concerned about it getting stuck in traffic on 14th street.

[fourthwarden]

Originally Posted by primaltech

First of all... what? 9.4 miles? I guess they mean, half that? As in they're counting both directions?

Just... what in the... heck is this. Juniper and Courtland streets don't need BRT... they're right next to the MARTA line. These aren't transit- underserved areas. That's the heart of Midtown and Downtown. The only area not well served enough by transit is Georgia State Stadium, and all you really need there is a frequent bus shuttle loop service, between there and nearby Georgia State MARTA station.

Why Arts Center? Just... huh? I don't get it.

MARTA... you're weird.

You should look at my post from earlier in the thread. There is wider context here to keep in mind.

[cqholt]

In an October letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation, then-Mayor Kasim Reed said the city of Atlanta would commit up to $30 million from its TSPLOST program

There goes more TSPLOST money, while it is a transportation project the public was sold on the idea that TSPLOST projects would be spread around the city and help all-Atlantans, from traffic signal coordination in SWAT to multiuse trails on the Eastside.

[primaltech]

The route just doesn't make any sense, regardless of whatever future plans there.

If you live in Midtown somewhere south of 10th St and east of Piedmont Ave, why would you walk a few blocks in order to wait for a bus to take you all the way up to Arts Center station (via heavy traffic 14th St), when you can just a couple more blocks, to Midtown station or North Avenue station.

Maybe if you're going to the park, but I thought the whole point of Piedmont Park was exercise on a nice day. Why would you take a bus to the park?

Dedicated lanes "BRT" is kind of silly for going north-south through Midtown. Seems like a weird priority, for literally the one area of the whole metro that already has mass rapid transit in place, which is way better than a bus.

Summerhill area, yeah, makes sense to have.