Mass Transit in Atlanta, GA

Mass Transit in Atlanta, GA

Mass transit in Atlanta, Georgia is not without its limitations; however, on the whole it is convenient, affordable, and progressive, and valuable to the population.

The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority puts out an annual report on metro Atlanta's transportation systems. It is a comprehensive and detailed accounting of the condition of transit in the state of Georgia. The GRTA annual report covers a variety of transportation factors, such as the increase or decrease in traffic congestion and its influencing forces, statistical data about morning and afternoon rush hour, transit safety and accident and death rates, the budgetary and financial concerns of county, city, and state agencies, the status of various road and bridge projects, and even the state of Georgia's pavement. (Hart, March 3, 2011) It is an impressive narrative of anything and everything one ever wanted to know about Georgia's transportation systems. The reader who is dependent on mass transit is left with a conclusion that brings both comfort and relief. Mass transit in Atlanta, Georgia is not without its limitations; however, on the whole it is convenient, affordable, and progressive, and valuable to the population.

Body

1. There are some limitations in Georgia's mass transit system...

a) Since 2004, the use of mass transit in Georgia has increased exponentially.

increased need for expanded service hours & a wider service area crowding & congestion on current transit systems

b) Economical factors are instigating some agencies to propose fare increases and route cuts.

Cobb Community Transit System - cutting three least-used routes & increasing fares .50 local and $1 express

c) Keeping these systems running is an expense that has become a burden on taxpayers.

the Atlanta Regional Commission wish list - 436 projects, $22.8 billion

.01 proposed tax increase would not even be adequate to fund all of these projects

Cobb county discussing shutting down their transit system completely; Clayton county shut theirs down last year.

2. Convenient. There are currently several transportation options in Atlanta to choose from, a bus or a train being the two most obvious choices.

a) House Bill 277...makes mass transit in GA easy to structure, service, and utilize.

b) Metro Atlanta Regional Transportation Association (MARTA) trains & buses

c) County transportation systems (Cobb County Transportation & others)

d) Future of mass transit:

streetcars high-speed rail systems.

3. Affordable. Along with being convenient, mass transit in Atlanta is an affordable means of travel.

a) cost of MARTA & buses compared to the cost of gasoline

b) reduced-fare passes for low-income passengers

c) the cost to the taxpayers is compensated for by its provision of employment and means to find and keep employment, allowing citizens of lesser means to support themselves instead of relying on public subsidies such as welfare programs

4. Progressive. The many forms of transportation in Atlanta make its public transit systems diverse and advanced.

a) bus and train routes that are beginning to compare to those of New York city, Chicago, and Philadelphia

b) projected use of streetcars is a progressive answer to the problems of inaccessible and inconvenient areas

c) Georgia makes effective use of high speed rail systems and it is likely that this will increase in the near future

d) College students reenact Freedom Rides to celebrate its 50th anniversary

5. Valuable. The fact that mass transportation systems in Atlanta are convenient, affordable, and progressive makes them ultimately extremely valuable to Georgia's population.

a) CCT: local route 10, 4,000 rides daily, and local route 30, 3,000 rides daily

b) Currently fares generate approximately $7.5 billion in revenue annually

Conclusion

The several transportation options in Atlanta to choose from, its affordable and convenient nature, and the many forms of transportation in Atlanta that make its public transit systems diverse and advanced are the components of a viable and necessary system. The above facts, figures, and statements prove that mass transit in Atlanta, Georgia is not without its limitations; however, on the whole it is convenient, affordable, and progressive, and valuable to the population.

Mass Transit in Atlanta, GA

The Georgia Regional Transportation Authority puts out an annual report on metro Atlanta's transportation systems. It is a comprehensive and detailed accounting of the condition of transit in the state of Georgia. The GRTA annual report covers a variety of transportation factors, such as the increase or decrease in traffic congestion and its influencing forces, statistical data about morning and afternoon rush hour, transit safety and accident and death rates, the budgetary and financial concerns of county, city, and state agencies, the status of various road and bridge projects, and even the state of Georgia's pavement. (Hart, March 3, 2011) It is an impressive narrative of anything and everything one ever wanted to know about Georgia's transportation systems. The reader who is dependent on mass transit is left with the following conclusion that brings both comfort and relief. Mass transit in Atlanta, Georgia is not without its limitations; however, on the whole it is convenient, affordable, and progressive, and valuable to the population.

There are some limitations in Georgia's mass transit system, the sort of problems that bring a commuter to read something like the GRTA annual report in the first place. These problems include overcrowding and congestion, limited service hours and service routes, and the expenses that go along with running any type of mass transit system.

Since 2004, the use of mass transit in Georgia has increased exponentially. This has caused an increased need for expanded service hours and a wider service area, and crowding and congestion on the transit systems currently in operation. Economical factors are instigating some agencies to propose fare increases and route cuts, such as the Cobb Community Transit System, which is talking about cutting the three bus routes with the lowest number of riders and increasing its fares .50 for local routes and $1 for express routes. Currently, the CCT fares only cover one-third of its expenses. (Camp, December 12, 2010) Mass transit is clearly a priority in Atlanta and its surrounding suburban counties, but keeping these systems running is an expense that has become a burden on taxpayers. Cobb county is currently operating on a $31 million budget shortfall, and shutting down the Cobb Community Transit system completely has been considered, which is what happened in Clayton county just last year. This would be devastating to locals who depend on buses to get to and from work, and would only serve to decrease the viability of Atlanta's economy.

This month, local city and county governments created wish lists that were presented to the Georgia state transportation planning director for review. The Atlanta Regional Commission, which supports Atlanta and ten of its surrounding counties, had a list of 436 projects for consideration that come to a grand total of $22.8 billion. The majority of these projects were requests for improvements and additions in mass transit systems, which backers say is "crucial to help deal with metro Atlanta's traffic problems...they are making the area less livable." (Associated Press, April 17, 2011) There is a proposed .01 tax increase that voters will decide whether or not to implement in a 2012 referendum. This tax increase would generate an additional $8 billion dollars in revenue, but opponents of this proposal argue that even this would not be adequate to support all of the expensive mass transit projects on the Atlanta Regional Commission's wish lists. There are officials, such as Larry Savage who ran for Cobb County's Department of Transportation chairman last year, who do not believe that mass transit should be subsidized by tax payers at all. Savage's platform decries the need for all transit systems to be self-supporting on order to be viable. (Camp, December 12, 2010)

There are issues and problems involved with mass transit in Atlanta, just as there are issues and problems involved with most everything in any type of community. Problems are a normal and even expected factor when people form a society and then live together in it, and no one has ever been able to find a perfect solution for any of these types of problems. But human beings are a creative, persistent, and ambitious species, and our solutions for the issues surrounding mass transit are effective and efficient. Despite the above issues, mass transit in Atlanta is convenient, affordable, and progressive, making it extremely valuable to the people of Georgia.

In 2010, House Bill 277 included language that separated the 159 counties in the state of Georgia and created twelve individual transportation districts, with Atlanta and its ten surrounding suburban counties of Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale making up one complete transportation district. (Orr, April 1, 2011) This makes mass transit systems in Georgia especially easy to structure, service, and utilize. Because of this, mass transit in Atlanta, Georgia is a convenient way to get to and from work or school, go shopping, or to participate in leisure activities such as the local cinema and sporting events.

There are currently several transportation options in Atlanta to choose from, buses and trains being the two most obvious choices. The Metro Atlanta Regional Transportation Association (MARTA) is the supervising authority of the mass public rail system that serves Atlanta and its surrounding areas. (Orr, April 1, 2011) MARTA is also responsible for the majority of the bus routes that serve Atlanta's urban areas. The outlying counties' bus routes fall under the jurisdiction of each individual county that they run to, from, and through, such as Cobb County's Cobb Community Transit (CCT), which has a total of 131 local, express and paratransit buses. (Camp, December 12, 2010) Within this multitude of service areas is a bus or train that will run practically anywhere and everywhere a commuter wants to go.

For the places that are currently unreachable by the mass transportation systems in existence are plans to bolster these systems with additional service routes and times. In the past, Atlanta has been a city that favors individual automobiles. But this attitude is shifting as newer residents to Georgia who are formerly from cities with extended railway service make an impact for future trends in transportation. "In fact, Atlanta is on the leading edge of a national trend: Since 2000, neighborhoods within three miles of downtown Atlanta have seen a 61% surge in residents aged 25 to 34" (Schneider, March 7, 2011) who are demanding access to affordable, efficient, and progressive mass transportation. These new young citizens are educated professionals who are market-trendy, street-savvy, and culturally sophisticated, and they do not want to waste their time sitting in an overpriced SUV in congested traffic. (Schneider, March 7, 2011) Using the highway is not a viable option for these commuters. Brant Sanderlin (February 23, 2011) tells readers that "a recent study by Forbes magazine named Atlanta as the number-one worst city for commuters" and public transportation is the obvious solution for Atlanta's diverse new population. In response to the needs of this new Georgia, Metro Atlanta government are asking for an unprecedented amount of mass transit expansion.

Brand Sanderlin (February 23, 2011) describes the various expansion proposals. One of the more controversial but overall most exciting project is the Atlanta Belt Line Streetcar Circulator, a streetcar transit system that will be a complement to MARTA by traveling where trains and buses are not accessible or convenient. The first planned route will start at the Martin Luther King Historic Site on Jackson Street and end at Centennial Park, and a second will start at Arts Center, traveling along Peachtree Street and ending at Five Points. "Streetcars are more ideal than buses because they are quieter, give off fewer emissions and are not affected by traffic" (Sanderlin, February 23, 2011) and the Streetcar Circulator will help to create an estimated 1,399 jobs. In The Transit Metropolis: A Global Inquiry, Robert Cervero (1998, pp. 207-211) describes how streetcars have helped with economic revitalization in other states, including Washington, Massachusetts, and California, most famously in San Francisco. Streetcars are also good for the environment; Cervero tells us that "the prolific use of streetcars has the ability to reduce average annual fuel emissions by one sixth and to cut the amount of fuel consumption used by public transportation by almost one third." (Cervero, 1998, p. 197) Another proposal that Sanderlin (February 23, 2011) discusses is MARTA State of Good Repair, which will provide a major overhaul to the system, with massive repairs and revitalization to its trains, buses, and transit facilities, as well as purchasing new equipment and vehicles. Howard Stacy (April 12, 2011) debates the benefits of high speed railway systems, which he outlines as being "good for [Atlanta] because it reduces congestion on the highways. Second, high-speed rail reduces the amount of gasoline we burn, reducing our dependence on foreign oil. Third, high-speed rail reduces air pollution and helps with climate change. High-speed rail is a smart, safe alternative to bumper-to-bumper traffic." High speed rail is not a major part of Georgia's future at this time, but there are plans to implement this service in several parts of the state, including the northeast, such as the route from New Orleans to Atlanta to Washington. (Stacy, April 12, 2011) It is most likely that this type of mass transportation will become increasingly relevant to Atlanta in the near future.

Along with being convenient, mass transit in Atlanta is affordable. Howard Stacy (April 12, 2011) tells his readers that "recently, the price of gasoline has jumped to an average of $3.73 a gallon and is expected to go higher." Currently the price of express routes and paratransit services are $4 per ride, and one-way fares on local routes are $2. There are people who argue that these costs are unreasonable and unaffordable, especially for the population who lives on or under the poverty level. But compared to a tank of gas, which can run anywhere from $35 to $50 or more, and the cost of commuting in a personal vehicle which includes not only gasoline but insurance payments, vehicle loans, and maintenance, mass transit fares are comparatively cheap. The needs of the lower income population are a consideration, and it is possible to purchase reduced-fare passes if one meets the low-income requirements of MARTA and other county transportation systems.

The cost to taxpayers is also an issue for some opponents of mass transit. A whopping $13.5 billion dollars is needed if the entirety of the Atlanta Regional Commission's wish list for mass transit projects is to be approved. (Associated Press, April 17, 2011) Currently taxpayers fund approximately 1/3 of all mass transit in the state of Georgia. (Camp, December 12, 2010) But the cost to the taxpayers is compensated for by its provision of employment and means to find and keep employment, allowing citizens of lesser means to support themselves instead of relying on public subsidies such as welfare programs. "This whole system is very necessary for people, because everyone can't afford a car or to drive. A lot of kids use the buses to get to the rec center, so it keeps them out of trouble, and it gets them to school, too," says a mass transit rider in Kathy Ruth Camp's (December 12, 2010) article. "Without this bus or this system, a lot of people would lose their jobs because they have no way to get there," another rider tells Camp (December 12, 2010). Jarir S. Dajani (November 1997) tells readers that when the Atlanta Mass Transit System was redistributed back in the late '80's and early '90's, the city saw a major overhaul in its unemployment, economic, and welfare statistics. In Urban Transportation Systems, Sigurd Grava (2002, p. 57) tells us that "public transportation is a vital component of any urban city, and in fact a city cannot be considered livable without a safe, reliable, affordable means of mass transit."