The MARTA board of directors has advanced the Safe Routes to Transit Project to repair and replace crumbling infrastructure near its high-use bus routes.
“Nearly every passenger trip begins or ends on the roadside at one of MARTA’s 9,000 bus stops, and missing sidewalks or unsafe crossings can create real barriers to mobility for our customers,” MARTA General Manager and CEO Collie Greenwood said in a press release. “Safe Routes to Transit helps us remove, repair, and replace crumbling infrastructure so riders can get to and from the bus and other MARTA services safely.”
After site selection and preliminary permitting coordination phases, MARTA will address pedestrian safety at high ridership bus stops, providing high visibility crosswalks, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ramps, curb extensions, medians and refuge islands, and pedestrian beacons, among other improvements.
The fiscal year 2024 budget for this project is $6.7 million, with 80 percent or $1 million each secured by state Representatives David Scott, Hank Johnson, and Nikema Williams. Twenty percent will come from MARTA’s Capital Programs budget, and the remainder from the Transportation Improvement Program Surface Transportation Block Grant.
Additionally, Safe Routes to Transit will support pedestrian infrastructure needs coming from MARTA’s Bus Network Redesign. The redesign has moved through discovery and engagement processes and is currently in the design phase, where planners are working to ensure MARTA’s future bus service will serve the greatest number of customers efficiently, and that includes safely connecting people to transit service.