MARTA has secured $1.75 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation to create a transit and transit-oriented development (TOD) accelerator to close capital funding gaps for projects across the region.
MARTA’s primary source of funding is the sales tax revenue collected in Fulton, DeKalb, and Clayton counties and the City of Atlanta. Combined with fare revenue and federal funding, these sources allow MARTA to operate and maintain its current system, but additional funding is necessary to meet all the transit expansion needs of the growing region.
The City of Atlanta levied an additional half-penny in 2016, which is projected to generate $3 billion, and while that amount is sufficient for the planned projects, it is far short of the overall investments that other cities such as Los Angeles ($120 billion) and Seattle ($54 billion) are making in their transit system expansion programs.
With this grant, MARTA plans to work in partnership with the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to explore and validate that the property value increase resulting from transit investment can finance a project. Access to such new revenue will potentially unlock additional public-private partnerships and the ability to secure Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loans.
“From Georgia 400 bus rapid transit to Roosevelt Highway and rail infill stations in between, the transit needs of this region are far greater than our current funding model supports,” said MARTA General Manager and CEO Collie Greenwood said in a press release. “I’m thrilled that MARTA will be able to form a dedicated team to work alongside the traditional funding teams to coordinate with regional partners and USDOT to solve funding gaps for transit and TOD projects.”
Georgia senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock as well as legislators Hank Johnson and Nikema Williams secure the grant.
This accelerator will help MARTA build on its strong track record of innovative solutions to funding gaps such as its public-private partnerships with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs in providing affordable housing near transit. Similarly, the accelerator will seek other capital partnerships and funding sources to support TOD.
As part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and administered by the Build America Bureau, the Regional Infrastructure Accelerators (RIA) Program aims to accelerate project delivery and clear barriers for credit-worthy projects by funding and encouraging best practices.