FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December
30, 2021
FIRST MARTA 2040 EXPANSION PROJECT ENTERS
FEDERAL FUNDING PROGRAM
Clayton Southlake Bus
Rapid Transit Seeks Capital
Investment Grant “Small Starts” Funding
ATLANTA – The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority
(MARTA) has requested that the Clayton Southlake Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)
project be granted entry into the Project Development phase of the Federal
Transit Administration’s (FTA) Capital Investment Grant (CIG) Program as a
Small Starts Project. After a long absence from the CIG program, Clayton
Southlake BRT is the first of several projects MARTA will advance as part of
its MARTA 2040 program with requested CIG funding.
“This is an important milestone for MARTA and the first of
many to come as we embark on the largest expansion in our history,” said MARTA
General Manager and CEO Jeffrey Parker.
The estimated $300 million BRT project will
provide high-capacity transit service connecting the College Park MARTA Station
to several key destinations in Clayton County including Airport Gateway, Shops
of Riverdale, Southern Regional Medical Center campus, Mount Zion commercial
corridor, and Southlake Mall. Features of
the BRT system will be similar to those
found in rail investments including dedicated transit lanes, more frequent
service, BRT-focused stations, and transit-oriented development
opportunities. The project would also include 13 new BRT-branded stations
with offboard fare collection, the purchase of ten BRT-branded electric buses
and associated electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and the installation
of transit signal priority equipment at key intersections.
“Clayton County residents will benefit from
the Southlake BRT because it will make a trip from College Park to
Southlake Mall 19 minutes faster, making it easier to access jobs, healthcare,
and entertainment throughout the region,” said Clayton County
Chairman Jeff Turner. “I’m excited that this is MARTA’s first application for
federal transit funds in decades.”
The recent federal Investment in Infrastructure and Jobs Act,
which reauthorized surface transportation programs for five years, included a
change championed by Senator Raphael Warnock to increase the eligibility
for Small Starts to $400 million and increase the maximum amount of federal
funding from $100 million to $150 million. These changes will ensure that
the Southlake BRT project is eligible and potentially leverage more federal
funding to support it.
MARTA received support from the Clayton
County Board of Commissioners in November to advance the
project, and because the CIG program is competitive
and timely entry into the pipeline is critical to success, the MARTA
Board of Directors voted to move on the project earlier this month. If
entry into project development is granted, next steps include CIG budget
request to Congress in August, completion of the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) next December, and construction underway in summer
2024 with an operational date in 2026.
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