Atlanta Beltline shared updates about potential routes and stops for Beltline transit during a community engagement meeting on Sept. 26.
The organization has been studying potential alignments for light rail on the Beltline, focused on the southeast, southwest and northwest segments of the 22-mile corridor since MARTA used resources conducting a feasibility study of the northeast portion back in 2021.
The study area covers about 13 miles, from Glenwood Avenue south of I-20 to Bankhead on the west side and north to the area near the Lindbergh MARTA station. ABI received 80 percent of the funding for the $3.5 million study through a Federal Transit Administration planning grant.
One of the main Beltline transportation goals is “making sure that as we move this thing forward that we have a transit network that expands, a trail network that expands, and reaches not just the Beltline but out into the city,” Shaun Green, principal engineer for ABI and project manager for the study, said.
This initial meeting with the public on the transit study findings included only high-level analysis, highlighting a handful of potential paths light rail could take along each of the three segments as well as proposed stops along those routes.
Southeast Beltline
In the southeast corridor, from the proposed Murphy Crossing infill station near where the Beltline intersects with Murphy Ave. up to Glenwood Ave., the transit study team assessed 14 proposed station locations and recommended moving forward with seven stops.
The largest stretch between stations, from Boulevard to Glenwood Ave, is less than one mile. Several of the more than 120 attendees at the meeting raised questions about why the proposal did not include a stop at United Ave. or Delmar Ave. to reduce that distance.
Green explained that more stations result in longer travel times due to the frequent stopping.
“The conventional wisdom 15 years ago, 10 years ago has been shifting to where we are right now, which is we have a trail network that is a wonderful connector. So it collects people and it can distribute people to Beltline transit stations so that we don’t have to have stations located every 1,500 feet or something like that. That’s just too much in terms of travel time,” he said.
The station locations are still in a draft phase, and Beltline team members expressed that community concerns about the distance between those stops on the Southeast side could be incorporated as the planning is finalized.
Southwest Beltline
In the southwest segment, which covers from Murphy Ave up to the proposed infill station at Joseph E. Boone Blvd and onto Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy, the team identified another six stops from an initial list of 12 proposed station locations.
The largest distance between stops in this corridor is .75 miles.
Several community members in attendance asked why Pittsburgh Yards was not considered a station location. Green shared that elevation changes around that area would make it difficult to provide a ramp system to get to a transit stop there.
Northwest Beltline
While the alignment of the trail itself is clear along the southern portions, the northwest corridor is a more complex planning task, Green said.
“In the northwest… we don’t have that abandoned railroad corridor. So we’re having to do some alternatives analysis to try to figure out how we can get — generally speaking — from Bankhead up to Lindbergh,” he said.
The study team assessed several different routes that light rail could take, with some traveling all the way into Atlantic Station and others staying further north. Each of the routes could connect to the proposed infill station at Armour Yards or all the way up to Lindbergh MARTA Station if needed, Green said.
From an initial 18 potential alignment options, the ABI team evaluated engineering feasibility, connectivity to jobs, activity centers, and other transit, and equity and inclusion factors to narrow them down to five corridors.
“The big, big, big activity center we’re trying to hit with this corridor is Piedmont Hospital and the Shepherd Center,” Green said.
There are still questions about acquiring the right of way for transit in the northwest quadrant, including whether Norfolk Southern or CSX will allow for light rail through their active corridors in that area.
Next steps
Over the next few months, Green said the ABI team will create ridership projections and potential service plans and estimate capital and operations costs. Then the study process will move forward to refining the alignments and station locations and assessing funding options. ABI plans to recommend a locally preferred alternative (the alignment agreed upon by engineers and the public) by late 2025 in order to move from the study and planning stages into early design and environmental analysis.
Throughout the meeting, Green emphasized the high-level nature of the information being presented. Questions like which side of the street light rail would run along and what type of platform should be built at stations will be considered during the next phase of design, he said.
“We have a lot more work to do,” Green said.
The preliminary plans presented also include the four infill stations proposed by Mayor Andre Dickens in April, which have not yet been incorporated into the More MARTA list of projects. Last month, members of transit advocacy group Beltline Rail Now called on MARTA to seek maximum federal funding for More MARTA projects and to move forward with the momentum from this Beltline Transit Study to build light rail and the infill stations along the trail network.
The fixation on light rail makes no sense. The Beltline will better serve all by simply separating the wheeled users from the pedestrian users. Bikes — and especially ebikes — are the obvious solution.
Adding another lane to the Beltline:
1. will meet an obvious need (the existing lane is overcrowded and arguably dangerous to pedestrians).
2. can be implemented at much less cost than light rail.
3. can be implemented in much less time that light rail.
4. will not turn the Beltline into a barrier that is no longer easily crossed.
5. allow ebikes to be the door-to-door solution.
The streetcars downtown have extremely lower ridership. Why expand a loser onto the Beltline?
Exactly! Well said and succinct analysis.
Hey friend, I second adding more lane space for wheeled users. To better serve everyone we have to provide options.
Bikers and skaters just need more space to maneuver around walkers and wheelchairs. My ideal Beltline would widen the trail to allow more space for wheel traffic, while keeping the 20 years of planning to add the much needed street car expansion.
Just like widening car lanes leads to more driving, expanding the street car and expanding our bike and walking infrastructure in tandem will lead to higher and safer usage of both.
Hello!
Interesting input, however I do not necessarily agree with the idea that the streetcar creates a barrier. I recently took a trip to Dublin, Ireland where they have a very successful street car that runs through the city, streets, and parks. It is well ridden a vital part of their infrastructure. No one seems to mind that it is there and it only accounts for a few incidents a year, while moving millions.
Best