MARTA raises fares today, gets carnival-like
October 1, 2009 at 10:10 am by Thomas Wheatley in NewsIt’s gonna cost you a little bit extra to take MARTA starting today.
Starting Thursday, MARTA fares will go up for the first time since 2001, parking fees will rise, and children will have to pass a height requirement to ride free [ed. !], according to MARTA.
Regular fares are now $2, monthly passes are $60, and monthly passes for the Mobility handicapped service are $108. Both monthly and Mobility passes are expected to rise in cost in following years. Parking fees have also gone up by $1.
The fare hike, which was approved earlier this year after state lawmakers once again failed to ease MARTA’s funding restrictions, follows service cuts and other cost-saving measures.
MARTA General Manager and CEO Bev Scott has made clear in the past that such measures still won’t solve the transit system’s financial woes. New sources of revenue and changes to its funding formula must be found to keep buses and trains a-movin’.
October 1st, 2009 at 10:30 am
They also changed the names of the rail lines, supposedly now known as the blue, green, red, and yellow lines. At least according to their web site; there was no change inside the stations or trains (not even in the announcements).
October 1st, 2009 at 10:39 am
Measuring the kids? That’s stupid.
October 1st, 2009 at 10:49 am
“The fare hike, which was approved earlier this year after state lawmakers once again failed to ease MARTA’s funding restrictions”
Wull ah-corse not. You Uhtlahntuhns don need any uh ahr suppohrt…Uhtlahntuh’s fulluh crime an welfahh queeyuns an suchlahke.
Naw. Movin on. Anywuhn up fo anuthah round ah tax cuts?
October 1st, 2009 at 11:49 am
The agency has also officially changed its name to ‘The MARTA.’
October 1st, 2009 at 11:52 am
Also, after perusing the press release on The MARTA’s website, it appears that although people can no longer bring small children on buses and trains, medium-sized common livestock such as chickens, goats, and pigs are now allowed.
October 1st, 2009 at 3:02 pm
ptkdude, there’s a new map in the Decatur station indicating the new rail line names, and it was displayed several times on the television.
I wasn’t really looking for other instances, but that’s what I observed yesterday.
October 1st, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Wait a second. Giving the “lines” four different colors doesn’t change the fact that it’s two “lines” and two spurs. But i appreciate their creativity. Well done.
October 1st, 2009 at 4:31 pm
Watching how the Republicans are acting in GA makes me wonder why we are such a heavily Republican State…Well actually I know why but I’ll pretend to not know since ignorance is bliss in this case.
Anyway, want to provide the links to two MARTA blog posts by CLN since they sum up part of the problem.
First post was last month about
Jill Chambers grandstanding again. Problem is we have a small antique dealer trying to micro manage a billion dollar organization subject to truckloads of regulations. Upset about hiring two lobbyists? Please Jill!!!
http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/freshloaf/2009/09/15/marta-gets-battered-by-jill-chambers-for-4258th-time/
Second post was about the morons in general running the state legislature and blocking the passage of MARTA using capital funds to pay for operations not because it makes sense but because they were playing politics to get SB 1 passed. What pisses me off is the state legislators don’t give any state funding to MARTA and now on top of that they want to obstruct the organization from doing what makes sense – in other words when sales tax revenues are down due to a bad economy don’t spend to expand spend to operate and avoid a fare increase. http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/freshloaf/2009/04/08/state-rep-house-gop-used-marta-funding-as-political-football/
The fare increase has been done, for me the monthly pass for unlimited rides at $60 is still a bargain and far cheaper than driving from Chamblee. Though the service cuts were unfortunate and sometimes a nuisance (worse for others).
Oh the height for children, they have the lines on the fair gates at the heights, its not like the attendants were going to ID children so it makes sense to do it on height.
Finally with this fare increase in part caused by the Republican legislators, its another tax increase the state has done. They also raised my property taxes by eliminating the funding of Gov Barnes’ state homestead exemption. So this republican state is raising taxes on me left and right.
October 1st, 2009 at 4:49 pm
@atlpaddy: OMG will people stop using “the” in front of MARTA???? It’s like pronouncing Ponce de Leon all Spanish-like.
It bothers me, also, like people from California calling our interstates “the” I-75 or “the” I-85.
I did hear the reference to a “yellow line” train this morning over the speaker at Five Purnts, but they shoulda put color cards at the front of the trains, just like WMATA.
October 1st, 2009 at 4:53 pm
If we did not live in such a red neck backwards state then we would have so many different colored lines it would be hard to keep track of. Try an remember when bitching about Marta that it can only go so far without the state’s help. Why dont they help? I guess there is another highway needed in Saxby country.
October 1st, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Speaking of Red the Red Line on Marta is the one that runs from the airport to the North Springs station. Which is the station preferred by Forsyth Residents.
Forsyth where blacks had their homes and property stolen and sold to others in 1912 and where in 1987 they were throwing stones at civil rights activists and when this group was founded http://www.nationalist.org/docs/books/covenant.html
October 1st, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Keep in mind, MARTA still has to spend (by law) half of revenues on “capital” expenditures. Hence, I believe, the name changes.
October 1st, 2009 at 8:05 pm
i don’t know what u guys r talking about.
as far as i know, everyone still calls it “riding the martas!”
October 2nd, 2009 at 4:25 pm
Do you think we’ll be treated to a follow-up tune called “bitch you can’t afford to ride the marta bus”?
October 2nd, 2009 at 5:14 pm
jeezus, the original is awful:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQTuYo6HmiQ
October 2nd, 2009 at 6:41 pm
Geez why did you take off my post with the links to two previous creative loafing articles about Jill Chambers’ dumb moves and the other about the legislators playing political football with MARTA and messing us up vis a vie the 50% capital and operating law?
I put some time into that, makes me not want to post here.
October 2nd, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Sorry about that, erichov. Wordpress often flags replies that contain more than one link as spam. I found your comment and have approved it. Thanks for posting those.