ATLANTA TRANSIT (Marta, Beltline, Peachtree Streetcar, LovJoy Commuter, etc...) - Page 243

smArTaLlone · #**4841** Posted **Mar 19, 2019, 1:26 PM**

https://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/lo...c61d79150.html

Quote:

From 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, voters will go to their local polling locations to cast ballots for or against a contract between MARTA and Gwinnett County. Passage of the MARTA referendum would mean the regional transit system would take over the provision of transit in the county and the levying of a 1 percent sales tax in the county to pay for that service.

Street Advocate · #**4842** Posted **Mar 19, 2019, 5:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by smArTaLlone

https://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/lo...c61d79150.html

While I'd love this to pass in Gwinnett, I don't have high hopes for today's vote. If it does not pass, I hope we see two special districts created: 1 in Gwinnett up to and including Gwinnett Place Mall and the 2nd up in Cobb including Cumberland and Marietta's town square.

montydawg · #**4843** Posted **Mar 19, 2019, 5:49 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Street Advocate

While I'd love this to pass in Gwinnett, I don't have high hopes for today's vote. If it does not pass, I hope we see two special districts created: 1 in Gwinnett up to and including Gwinnett Place Mall and the 2nd up in Cobb including Cumberland and Marietta's town square.

Unfortunately, these two smaller watered down districts would not be able to pull in enough tax dollars to fund the rail that is needed to provide good commuting options for people of Gwinnett or Cobb. I think some serious thought needs to be done at a policy level to figure out why it is so expensive to build rail here in the states, and some possible solutions to make it easier to implement and build. $250/$500 million a mile is pretty crazy.

Martinman · #**4844** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 1:10 PM**

Just 91,000 people voted in a county with a population of 920,000. (I have no idea how many registered voters are in Gwinnett). A lot of people believe that this is the reason the vote was scheduled for a special election. Given the county's demographics, I do not think it will be another 30 years before the county attempts to do something about transit again.

Tuckerman · #**4845** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 1:49 PM**

An unfortunate outcome, but expected given the anti-urban, rural focus of the current Republican party in GA and Gwinnett Co. The vote reschedule was a typical ploy to defeat the MARTA extension. There is hope that this can be placed on the 2020 Presidential election ballot and then it most likely succeed.

joecool · #**4846** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 3:38 PM**

Why don't they just expand Marta in the city. Screw them. They can sit in traffic for 2 hours, each way. Focus on expanding in the city core. Emory, West Midtown, N. Druid Hills, etc...

Tuckerman · #**4847** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 4:33 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by joecool

Why don't they just expand Marta in the city. Screw them. They can sit in traffic for 2 hours, each way. Focus on expanding in the city core. Emory, West Midtown, N. Druid Hills, etc...

Agreed and also add the original plan for a Northlake line which could connect to the envisioned Tucker - Smyrna perimeter line

MARTAisSmarta · #**4848** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 4:50 PM**

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Originally Posted by Tuckerman

Agreed and also add the original plan for a Northlake line which could connect to the envisioned Tucker - Smyrna perimeter line

This would require Dekalb, Fulton, and possibly Cobb to approve more funding.

Street Advocate · #**4849** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 4:58 PM**

IMO, the results are expected. Put MARTA on the ballot in 2020 and the results will flip.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if there’s special Gwinnett district that joins MARTA before the rest of the county. I think this referendum over (under?) did it with what was planned out. Include timelines. Include guaranteed projects, including three vital connections to the existing network. Extend HRT as close to Lawrenceville as possible (and hype up the potential future commuter brain train to Athens), BRT/express from Snellville to Alpharetta (yes, Alpharetta, fulton Co. portion paid by MARTA/Fulton Co.), and connect Snellville to the blue line (CRT?). This is close to what they included in he vote, but it was disjointed and not communicated clearly how it would impact existing and future population trends (population density would be a better metric rather than just population in the following: https://garc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/St...5b0dc8384b2ebb). Plus routes need to be streamlined from origins and destinations. Obviously include more with funding where possible, but hone in on those numbers and improved commutes/access to jobs/residences.

Compliment those with tech upgrades for real time transit not necessarily funded by Gwinnett alone, but as a MARTA system upgrade in general. I'd also suggest how future MARTA projects could tie into their vote. Example, if DeKalb buys into the network, there's greater potential for a 285 transit line that would help connect Gwinnett more directly to Sandy Springs (& eventually Cumberland/Cobb).

Either way, I think it’s time metro Atlanta started voting with their dollar and where they choose to live and work. Here's hoping more people move in town and MARTA plows ahead with routes that serve those already in the system. Atlanta needs to lead by example and make things easier for when other counties eventually tie into the network.

A big issue of these isolated county sales tax are related to the core of the measure and what is possible: every dollar spent has to be spent in County. That leads to isolation and a less integrated network. We need projects that collaborate and cross counties/cities/etc. Gwinnett projects *need* to include discussions with DeKalb and Fulton Counties in order to create new lines that get residences to destinations.

Libertarian · #**4850** Posted **Mar 20, 2019, 10:26 PM**

2020 will change nothing. You guys are fighting the last war.

ATLMidcity · #**4851** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 1:48 AM**

Charlotte Nash needs to go. The county commissioner basically "primaried" the MARTA referedum by NOT holding the vote during a general election, and instead, scheduling a special election.

She knew full well Republicans vote more heavily during special & single-purpose elections than democrats. And, to add salt to the wound, remained neutral on the subject so she could not be held accountable for the outcome.

Republicans are conniving and know how to throw an election in their favor, but metro Atlantans will suffer the consequences due to the lack of transit in this sprawling region.

Even former governor Nathan Deal publicly supported the referendum, but I seriously wonder if he and Mrs. Nash embraced a more nefarious position behind closed doors.

Libertarian · #**4852** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 10:51 AM**

Nash did everything she could to get the thing to pass and would have scheduled for a general election if she could. Like many Gwinnett commissioners past and present she's in bed with the developers big time. Marta will not pass in a general election. Don't kid yourself on that one but if you don't believe me then keep trying. You guys seem to think the ethnics in Gwinnett will just move in lock step with the elites and their media propaganda. The ethnics mostly vote with their pocketbook and realize Marta will take several hundred yearly from their pockets. Every pro-Marta in Gwinnett just voted, and we now know there are about 40,000 of them. Nobody else favors this downward trending non-solution.

GeorgiaPeanuts · #**4853** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 3:24 PM**

The ethnics? Really?

Libertarian · #**4854** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 3:38 PM**

The other side keeps referring to old white people so I'm lumping the rest of you as millennials or ethnics. Own it.

Street Advocate · #**4855** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 3:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Libertarian

Nash did everything she could to get the thing to pass and would have scheduled for a general election if she could. Like many Gwinnett commissioners past and present she's in bed with the developers big time. Marta will not pass in a general election. Don't kid yourself on that one but if you don't believe me then keep trying. You guys seem to think the ethnics in Gwinnett will just move in lock step with the elites and their media propaganda. The ethnics mostly vote with their pocketbook and realize Marta will take several hundred yearly from their pockets. Every pro-Marta in Gwinnett just voted, and we now know there are about 40,000 of them. Nobody else favors this downward trending non-solution.

Libertarian · #**4856** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 3:53 PM**

By the way I got back from north Dallas and Plano last night. That place is an alternate universe of middle aged and old white Texan folks. Unbelievable.

montydawg · #**4857** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 5:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Libertarian

By the way I got back from north Dallas and Plano last night. That place is an alternate universe of middle aged and old white Texan folks. Unbelievable.

Just being the devil's advocate, but I suspect a lot of Gwinnett voters see the MARTA vote as a 'local control' issue, just like the City of Atlanta see the state attempt to take over the Airport as an attack of local sovereignty and control of the airport. Perhaps a good compromise would be for Gwinnett to fund and run their local bus service (as they are doing today), and only contract with MARTA to run only the Rail portion, which does not make sense for Gwinnett to operate themselves. With this, they can keep more local control of their tax dollars.

I know the previous MARTA contract called for Gwinnett to hold the purse strings and control all money being paid to MARTA, however, it still probably sat the wrong way with voters. I won't comment on the 'special referendum' issue or libritarian's use of the 'ethnics' and 'millennial' because those are separate discussions.

ATLMidcity · #**4858** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 9:07 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Libertarian

By the way I got back from north Dallas and Plano last night. That place is an alternate universe of middle aged and old white Texan folks. Unbelievable.

He who speaks with forked tongue makes no sense.

Maybe you should relocate to a homogeneous place where the melanin is closer to that of an albino. Plano is a sprawling suburb full of like-minded republicans and Trumptards.

All of the ethnics and millennials will support you and your decision to move the hell out of metro Atlanta.

dpoulos27 · #**4859** Posted **Mar 21, 2019, 11:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ATLMidcity

He who speaks with forked tongue makes no sense.

Maybe you should relocate to a homogeneous place where the melanin is closer to that of an albino. Plano is a sprawling suburb full of like-minded republicans and Trumptards.

All of the ethnics and millennials will support you and your decision to move the hell out of metro Atlanta.

Lol - Don't waste your cleverness on dudes like that. Anyone who uses terms like "ethnics" doesn't deserve a response. He's just trying to get attention.

If it goes on the 2020 ballot it has a good chance of passing. If they keep rejecting it that's on them, plenty of the 6 million of us want (and need) MARTA to expand. Just need to get the ball moving so I can enjoy it in my dotage haha.

Libertarian · #**4860** Posted **Mar 22, 2019, 12:23 AM**

Please let's not tell others who are different from us, to move. That's not a good look.
Personally I'm all for diversity.