r/MARTA

Current status of the Better Breeze transition according to MARTA's website:

Better Breeze - Construction, Service Impacts, & Station Status

(Map made by me)

Saw the train a bit more up close as it came through Eastbound at Edgewood Candler Park

While doing some land use research in the part of Doraville that is less than a mile northeast of the current Doraville MARTA Station, I came across an public ownership record of a possible future station. MARTA already owns the part highlighted on New Peachtree Road, as well as the adjoining bits on both sides of Oakcliff Road. Also, this adjoins the already existing railway right-of-way that MARTA already has permission to build along, and this site already had LONG ago been planned for a MARTA station at the site. The Hugo Arango Memorial Bridge over the tracks on Oakcliff already has enough clearance to fit a train and a couple of extra tracks underneath it, so from an engineering standpoint it would be relatively easy to build a station there on land that MARTA already owns. Plus, last week, a crane was set up near there, and was removing the old air conditioning units from the next two buildings northeast of that site, typically only done when the adjoining landowners are preparing to tear down those buildings in preparation for a major construction project in the area in the near future. Perhaps the long planned MARTA station there might actually be becoming a reality. Especially with the construction just outside the current Doraville Station area reducing lanes and making it difficult for MARTA busses to pull in and out of the station, I could see it happening.

Now they are testing the new trains during the day! This was a surprise at Inman Park.

Last week I saw a post talking about MARTA’s very first draft proposal, it features both what would’ve been the initial system build-out, as well as the long range plan, the former being the only one I’ve seen until now. The map is featured in the Atlanta Region Comprehensive Plan: Rapid Transit of 1961, detailing the need for an expansive network of freeways, as well as rapid transit. The full system buildout utilizes nearly every freight corridor we have, featuring several branches, and a loop of connections between Downtown and the Clifton Corridor. This map is meant to interpret these lines and spurs using today’s color-based naming system. The design is inspired by MARTA (before the most recent update) and WMATA’s system maps. Stations with a black circle are ones that were never officially created, but fall along the routes of the long-range plan. I also used their present day names, and followed the naming convention of major roads or neighborhoods for new ones.

Alongside this map, theres also maps from throughout MARTA’s planning process including the 1961 initial build out and long range plan, the 1962 plan which moreso resembles our present system, and the final 1971 map which became the MARTA we know today.

Fun Facts:

- The initial buildout included trunk lines to Marietta, Forest Park, Avondale, and Norcross (with the spur to Emory)

- Our tunneled subway under Broad and Peachtree Street wasn’t shown until the 1962 map, originally, the Marietta line would’ve followed the freight corridor along Marietta Street, while the Norcross line would’ve followed what is today’s Eastside Beltline

- Original plans included the Blue Line going to Clarkston instead of continuing to Kensington and Indian Creek

- The West Line followed the freight corridor to Ben Hill (Cambellton) instead of later iterations taking it to Fulton Industrial

- The Constitution line is one of the more interesting ones for me. It’s never shown in any future maps, but the 1971 approved referendum showed a spur south of Garnett Station following the direction of Pryor Road to South Bend, terminating at Langford Parkway.

I've been really skeptical about taking MARTA late at night lately because they seem to be running trains only to Five Points east bound (pictured is Westlake station on Friday night ). Like why wouldn't it go to Indian Creek even if it's one of the last trains? Is it a single tracking thing?

WB at Inman Park at 11:13 PM

Was adding some ATLUTD tickets to my Google Wallet, then decided to check if Breeze was available. And there it was!

You can add passes and funds to the mobile Breeze Card, and even transfer an existing (orange) Breeze Card and convert it all to your mobile wallet. Just an FYI that upon transferring over from your physical card, it gets deactivated, and will no longer work.

ETA: There is a $2.00 one-time fee for activating a new virtual card if you want to keep a separate physical one. There doesn't appear to be a fee if you convert a current Breeze Card over.

Another update: It's looks like you can now convert your card to virtual using the Breeze Mobile app.

Here are the MARTA customers waiting hours today at the Lindbergh MARTA headquarters for their new cards. MARTA means: Moving Abomination Rapidly Through Atlanta!

Pictures taken Sunday afternoon, May 3.