Green Options

It’s slightly short notice, I know, but this Friday is Ride MARTA Day here in Atlanta!

A group of local activists is working to help raise awareness about MARTA and speak out against the threatened service cuts. They hope folks will pull together this Friday to boost ridership, introduce new riders to the system, and get folks thinking about the MARTA crisis. Check out more details and what you can do to help after the jump!

Regional officials are talking about using $25 million in bailout money to help MARTA cover its operating costs.

The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) recommended last week that funds earmarked for transit improvements go towards keeping MARTA afloat. The transit system is unable to cover its budget shortfall and operating costs, due to strict regulations on how it spends its revenue. MARTA gets the bulk of its funding from sales tax revenue, and it’s required to spend 50% on operating costs and 50% on capital expenses. This $25 million dollars would be a band aid fix, but it certainly beats cutting a day of service, like the MARTA board was proposing.

Not everyone is thrilled about this idea.

Governor Sonny Perdue is refusing MARTA officials’ request for a special session to address the crisis affecting Atlanta transit.

According to this story from the AJC, the Governor says that, “Special sessions are something we shy away from.” He said that his transportation staff met with MARTA officials, but he will not hold a special session to help the transit system address its financial woes. As a commenter on the AJC article pointed out, Perdue was happy to call a special session in 2006 when a judge struck down Georgia’s gay marriage ban. Maybe Perdue meant he tries to avoid special sessions when the issue at hand isn’t one that matters to him?

I gave Governor Perdue a piece of my mind, and you can get heard too! Here’s the letter I sent to his office and contact info so you can send one of your own.

Strict restrictions on how MARTA spends its revenue mean the system can’t afford to pay for its operating costs.

[Waiting for the Train. Creative Commons photo by Wesley Fryer]

The General Assembly voted down Senate Bill 120, which would have allowed MARTA to tap into $65 million in capital reserve funds. Since the system receives absolutely no state funding, it relies heavily on sales tax revenue to stay afloat. It’s a state restriction that is tying up the much needed money: MARTA is required to spend 50% of its revenue on operating costs and 50% on capital expenses. The really infuriating part of this vote is that the bill failed for reasons that had nothing to do with Atlanta’s transit system.

I have to admit that I’m a little embarrased. Yesterday, I gushed about Atlanta’s great green future, and then today, The Atlanta Jounral Constitution published this:

Without new revenue sources from the state or region…MARTA will be forced to dramatically reduce service levels, eliminating bus routes, cutting rail service (either certain days or times, or entire lines altogether), and potentially seriously impacting the overall economic well-being of this region and state.

This is from a memo that MARTA sent to state lawmakers. Atlanta’s transit system has been dealing with a $60 million budget shortfall since December. That, combined with a dramatic decrease in predicted sales tax revenue for the coming year have put the system into crisis. For a transit system funded entirely by sales tax revenue, it’s not surprising that MARTA is having trouble making ends meet. MARTA is one of the few, if not the only, transit systems in the nation that does not receive a penny of state funding.

In the wake of MARTA announcing a 60 million dollar budget shortfall, Atlanta got hit with more bad news for anyone hoping to ditch their cars. AMTRAK and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) are putting the proposed system of light rail, trails, and planned development into jeopardy.

[Creative Commons photo by Brett Weinstein]

What is the BeltLine?

The Atlanta BeltLine is a solution. While Atlanta does have a rail and bus system now, MARTA, the rail portion is pretty limited and the buses are a bit unreliable. The BeltLine was going to change the face of Atlanta’s transit system, connecting neighborhoods and making alternative transportation a viable option for more folks in the Atlanta area. They describe the BeltLine:

Our vision is that the BeltLine will be a continuous, connected corridor of parks, trails, greenspace, quality development and transit - completely unique to anything in any other U.S. city. It will connect in-town neighborhoods and promising business centers throughout the city and will link directly into MARTA rail and other public transit systems. Ultimately, the BeltLine is how Atlanta chooses to develop over the next 50 years.

Why would anyone want to stop a project like this?

[Creative Commons photo by Josh Hallett]

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) is $60 million in the hole - double their expected revenue shortfall for 2008. Administrators are talking about raising fares and reducing consumer services to help the transit system cope with the losses.