ATLANTA TRANSIT (Marta, Beltline, Peachtree Streetcar, LovJoy Commuter, etc...)

[montydawg]

Originally Posted by Street Advocate

I'm not sure whether to find it embarrassing or comical the line stops short of the rest of the community. Maybe it's just to get things rolling, but man it barely reaches a new rider base other than those in Historic Midtown.

I gather a dedicated BRT route could be easily converted to a LRT route someday if the ridership warranted it. Probably a wise move considering it seems to mirror the existing HRT line, but perhaps they are counting on increased density along the corridor eventually. This may be to create an incentive for development as well.

[ATLSkyPalaceOwner]

Is the Clifton Corridor currently funded?

[montydawg]

Originally Posted by ATLSkyPalaceOwner

Is the Clifton Corridor currently funded?

Just the Emory to Lindbergh section

[shivtim]

I'm very confused about the proposed BRT line, because Juniper is scheduled to have a dedicated bike lane, wider sidewalks, bioswales, etc installed this year. It's a project that's already fully funded and the design phase (with multiple public input meetings over the last 5 years) is wrapping up. This will reduce Juniper to two general purpose travel lanes. So how does a BRT fit in? Either it won't have a dedicated lane (and thus won't actually be BRT), or it will reduce Juniper to a single lane for cars. I don't see that happening. It's very disappointing that MARTA, the city, and Midtown Alliance don't seem to be talking to each other and coordinating on projects.

I also would not be surprised at all if this BRT is designed to be a replacement for Beltline Eastside Trail transit. Seems like Bottoms may be vindictively pulling transit funding from the eastside after she got walloped in the polls there. I would wager that the next streetcar construction we see will be on Campbellton road.

[shivtim]

Originally Posted by montydawg

Just the Emory to Lindbergh section

The one cent sales tax Atlanta passed could potentially be spent on this (it was included in the potential projects list), but it doesn't have to be. Clifton Corridor rail is technically unfunded right now, but with a large potential funding source. I would assume that since Emory/CDC annexed into the city specifically for this purpose, it will get built, but you never know.

[montydawg]

Originally Posted by shivtim

like Bottoms may be vindictively pulling transit funding from the eastside after she got walloped in the polls there. I would wager that the next streetcar construction we see will be on Campbellton road.

Bottoms has Been major for less than a month and she is only one of several board members on the MARTA board. There are too many business interests counting on the east side trail component. I find the suggestion that these were her intentions laughable.

[shivtim]

Originally Posted by montydawg

Bottoms has Been major for less than a month and she is only one of several board members on the MARTA board. There are too many business interests counting on the east side trail component. I find the suggestion that these were her intentions laughable.

I've heard otherwise from people directly involved. But we'll see. I hope I'm wrong, because we need transit on the Eastside Trail ASAP.

[Street Advocate]

Hardly any of the neighborhoods in Atlanta "need" rail at the moment. Campbellton and Cascade would benefit from more reliable/frequent bus service between greenbriar and Oakland Station. A streetcar out there would be more gimmicky than anything at the moment due to its lack of density/huge parcel sizes. Yes we need transit to serve communities that lack access to automobiles and are more likely to take transit. No we do not need to spend a ton to provide that service.

[Ant131531]

So when do you guys think we'll actually start seeing some tracks laid? Haven't really heard of anything new since the vote.

[montydawg]

Originally Posted by Ant131531

So when do you guys think we'll actually start seeing some tracks laid? Haven't really heard of anything new since the vote.

About a year ago they announced they were working on the engineering of the streetcar segment between the king memorial area and krog market. A small 1 mike section, but vital to link the east side trail to the existing network. I heard they were also working on a plan to improve the right of way for the streetcar on that congested street near the Ferris wheel and America’s mart.

[smArTaLlone]

This is getting serious.

https://politics.myajc.com/news/stat...kbk84qdCtC4FJ/

House Bill 930 would provide tens of millions of dollars for transit expansion in a 13-county area and would potentially provide hundreds of millions of dollars more in local sales taxes devoted to public transportation. It passed the House by a vote of 162 to 13.

Among other things, the bill would create a new board to oversee transit planning and construction in the region. And it would allow Gwinnett County residents to vote on whether to join MARTA later this year.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/...t-project.html

MARTA has received a $12.6 million federal grant to help fund a planned bus-rapid transit (BRT) project connecting the Summerhill area of Atlanta with Midtown.

The 9.4-mile BRT route will connect a neighborhood anchored by Georgia State University to MARTA’s heavy rail system and the Atlanta Streetcar network.

I would like to know how this is going to reconcile with Midtown's plans for Juniper Street which conflict with Marta's BRT plan.

[shivtim]

^I asked Midtown Alliance about it, and they said:
"Thank you for taking interest in the Juniper St Project update. MARTA is aware of the improvements currently scheduled to begin construction this year. Midtown has coordinated with MARTA throughout the design phase for Juniper Street and MARTA has been provided a copy of the existing plans. At this time I don’t have details on MARTA’s proposed BRT route down Juniper; however, feel free to contact MARTA at 404.848.5000."

[Street Advocate]

IDK how I feel about the BRT route. I’m supportive of the Capitol Ave portion. I’d rather see BRT be implemented elsewhere across town rather than juniper- although I know it will have a good long term impact. I’m probably just more curious about when/where/what type of transportation will be implemented from the TSPLOST

[Libertarian]

This is a no-brainer. Rationality dictates that, in Midtown, the northbound BRT is West Peachtree and southbound is on Spring.

[Martinman]

Originally Posted by shivtim

^I asked Midtown Alliance about it, and they said:
"Thank you for taking interest in the Juniper St Project update. MARTA is aware of the improvements currently scheduled to begin construction this year. Midtown has coordinated with MARTA throughout the design phase for Juniper Street and MARTA has been provided a copy of the existing plans. At this time I don’t have details on MARTA’s proposed BRT route down Juniper; however, feel free to contact MARTA at 404.848.5000."

Thanks for this. Its good to know that the various entities are at least communicating on this.

Originally Posted by Libertarian

This is a no-brainer. Rationality dictates that, in Midtown, the northbound BRT is West Peachtree and southbound is on Spring.

Good point. We don't know the route that is planned for the BRT loop but I think it was assumed that Juniper would be used since it aligns with the Hash tag BRT from city design plan.

[smArTaLlone]

https://saportareport.com/marta-name...rker-next-ceo/

MARTA’s Board of Directors Thursday selected Jeffrey A. Parker as its choice to be the agency’s next general manager and CEO.

Parker, who worked at MARTA as senior director of transportation operations from 2005 to 2008, currently is vice president of HNTB Corp., an infrastructure solutions firm that has worked closely with MARTA over the years.

“We are at a crossroads,” said Daniels. “We were looking for someone who has a proven track record of execution. We believe that [Jeff Parker’s] relationships here locally and nationally are strong from both the business and political side.”

[Jetlanta]

Originally Posted by Libertarian

This is a no-brainer. Rationality dictates that, in Midtown, the northbound BRT is West Peachtree and southbound is on Spring.

But I'm not sure that is true if the goal is to contact Summerhill. I live near Turner Field, actually a bit to the east. I'm not sure everyone realizes it, but taking Juniper straight south not only takes you through all of Midtown, past the major convention hotels, through GSU, through the State Capitol complex and City Hall, but dumps you onto the Connector. Not a single turn. However, one left turn at the Capitol and a right turn onto Capitol Ave and you are on Hank Aaron Blvd and in the heart of Summerhill. When you head north, you can literally take it all the way up Courtland/Piedmont. No turns at all. It is a very efficient routing with very few directional changes. In many ways, Ideal for BRT, imho.

[Libertarian]

No question about the south portion. The shift over to the west to correlate with the Midtown density could happen on Ivan Allen-Ralph McGill. That crossstreet is adequately wide to accommodate the lanes and turns.

[Jetlanta]

But why create a BRT that literally straddles the MARTA heavy rail line? Juniper/Piedmont seems a little more complementary to me versus competitive.