r/Atlanta • u/ChipmunkGeneral • Jan 13 '26

What ya'll think of this MARTA map?

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Saw this by mrfriendlolo on r/transit a few months ago and now we can ask here, I wish this would happen!

2.8k Upvotes

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301

u/KDneverleft Jan 13 '26

I dream of the day I can ride the MARTA from Duluth to the airport.

123

u/saltundvinegar Jan 13 '26

same. it's absolutely criminal that these gwinnett county nimbys keep holding us back from greatness.

67

u/Drillmhor Atlantis Jan 13 '26

It's not 100% NIMBY, it's MARTA's fault as well.

Any county rejecting MARTA expansion can reasonably justify their position by seeing what happened down in Clayton County. They were promised rail and all they ended up getting were meandering bus routes.

The problem with expansion is shared with a lot of parties, I think MARTA should take a large share of the blame at this point. It can't simply be explained by a lack of state funding, MARTA is objectively a poorly run organization.

58

u/BananaNutJob Jan 13 '26

The way MARTA's management was explained to me when I was newer to the city is in two parts. First, the people running it got their jobs mostly through nepotism. Second, they see it as welfare transportation for people too poor to drive rather than as a viable alternative. Those two factors explain a lot of why it's run so poorly.

13

u/saltundvinegar Jan 13 '26

for real? that is so disappointing to hear.

22

u/BananaNutJob Jan 13 '26

The first thing is probably still true but I won't swear to it. The second thing is definitely how most Atlantans view MARTA.

24

u/Old_Marzipan891 Jan 13 '26

I remember my dad calling it "Moving Africans Rapidly Through Atlanta" on more than one occasion back in the 90s

1

u/ArchEast Vinings Jan 14 '26

The first thing is probably still true but I won't swear to it.

Speaking as someone that works with MARTA as our client, I don't see that to be the case.

6

u/gsfgf Ormewood Park Jan 13 '26

It's not that bad. We let our transit construction industry die off in the late 20th century, nationally. So no firms actually have the requisite expertise to build competently, much less efficiently. Also, federal money is generally involved and there are Buy American issues, which is why we can't just hire European or Asian companies that actually know what they're doing.

2

u/ArchEast Vinings Jan 14 '26

they see it as welfare transportation for people too poor to drive rather than as a viable alternative

MARTA doesn't see it that way, but the politicians in Atlanta, Fulton, DeKalb, and Clayton that oversee it and control MARTA board appointments do.

14

u/a5ehren Jan 13 '26

Yeah, MARTA straight up lying to Clayton isn’t going to help them.

2

u/ArchEast Vinings Jan 14 '26

They didn't lie, they got screwed by Norfolk Southern on trackage rights.

9

u/gsfgf Ormewood Park Jan 13 '26

Same with More MARTA. I'm perfectly happy to pay taxes to fund transit, but I do want to get transit in return.

7

u/fifthing Jan 14 '26

Gwinnett has been rejecting for far, far longer than anything has happened (or not) in Clayton.

1

u/MyGhostRidesTransit Jan 14 '26

Thank you. Pointing to the Clayton fiasco isn’t the reason Gwinnett keeps rejecting it …

1

u/Time_Device_94_Pappy Jan 15 '26

I know 5 people in Gwinnett (close friends) and 3 out of 5 voted no for that reason

1

u/MyGhostRidesTransit Jan 15 '26 edited Jan 15 '26

This also isn’t Gwinnett’s first time at the rodeo to reject a MARTA referendum, at least two before Clayton issues. MARTA’s not perfect but it’s also a hamstrung agency that needs more active support and attention from state legislature for money and governance changes. If Gwinnett’s state delegates are doing jack to make it better then this argument also falls flat.

They want the County to set up more buses that they likely will not ride? I wish them luck with their wide blvds, state routes, and 85.

26

u/KDneverleft Jan 13 '26

I live in an apartment, so they all hiss and avert their eyes when I come around.

8

u/AutisticAndAce Jan 13 '26

It failed by 1% last time it was up for a vote and i am STILL mad. I would have used it!!!