Fresh Loaf

It’s gonna cost you a little bit extra to take MARTA starting today.

From the AJC:

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’.

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Atlanta Unsheltered’s Jeanne Bonner says there’s preliminary talk of using magnetic levitation trains to ferry Atlanta Braves fans from Five Points to Turner Field.

The issue came up yesterday at a meeting of MARTOC, a joint committee of the Georgia House and Senate that oversees MARTA’s budget.

I’m waiting for more details from the MARTA folks. There’s talk of lots of things, but where are we on this? I think the very preliminary stages.

What’s cool is if the project were to get off the ground, it could involve a Powder Springs company called American Maglev Technology. The company has a test track near its headquarters where it tests out a lighter vehicle version of the maglev technology.

Atlanta Unfiltered’s Jim Walls has more:

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Ah, MARTA oversight committee meetings. They must be really fun for transit officials, ya know?

According to Atlanta Unfiltered’s Jim Walls and the AJC’s Ariel Hart, yesterday’s meeting of the state committee tasked with overseeing how MARTA spends public dollars was the usual “berate-the-transit-agency-to-which-we-contribute-little-if-anything.”

States Rep. Jill Chambers, R-Dunwoody, who chairs the committee and has a reputation for ripping into MARTA, lit into transit honchos for their consulting deals. (Last week she picked up a 2010 opponent for her North DeKalb seat in Elena Parent. So she might not have been too happy.)

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On April 16, President Barack Obama gave rail lovers some long-awaited good news: As part of the president’s stimulus plan, he offered $8 billion to begin linking major U.S. cities with high-speed rail lines — and an additional $5 billion more to improve rail service over the next four years.

“We need high-speed rail,” Obama said. “It’s happening right now. It’s been happening for decades. The problem is, it’s been happening elsewhere, not here.”

By “elsewhere,” the president was referring to Europe and Asia. But he could just as easily have been talking about Southeastern states other than Georgia. Thanks to a lack of vision, little to no funding, and an almost cartoonish addiction to roads, the Peach State’s far behind many of its neighbors when it comes to rail.

Transit and transportation advocates say if the state’s leadership doesn’t work to catch up, Georgia could miss out on a nationwide rail renaissance.

Click here to continue reading this story.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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The state just doesn’t seem to understand MARTA’s importance to metro Atlanta. The Atlanta Regional Commission, however, just might.

Ariel Hart of the AJC reports:

A committee of the Atlanta Regional Commission on Thursday recommended that ARC divert up to $25 million in stimulus funds to MARTA to meet operating shortfalls. The money had been intended for long-needed metro Atlanta transportation projects.

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MARTA will still have to follow through with less draconian cuts, General Manager Beverly Scott said Thursday. They will likely include furloughs, raising employee payments for health care and stopping bus and train service at midnight.

An ARC spokesman tells CL that the full board will vote on the recommendation in May. In the meantime, it’s working with MARTA staff to examine its financial situation and to see if the transit agency can use the stimulus funds for operational purposes.

It’ll also be interesting to see what transportation projects might get dropped if the plan goes through.

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The MARTA board today called for Gov. Sonny Perdue to order state lawmakers back to the Gold Dome to consider legislation that might save the transit agency from implementing drastic service cuts.

MARTA General Manager Bev Scott says unless the General Assembly approves legislation that would ease restrictions on how MARTA spends a one-cent sales tax levied in Atlanta, Fulton County and DeKalb County — its main source of funding — the transit agency faces “Draconian budget cuts” and “Armaggedon.”

Possibly included in those cuts: No service on Fridays. Ariel Hart of the AJC reports decisions would probably be made in June and begin in September.

“Without access to this funding, we will essentially sever a critical economic engine in our state and no doubt send our economy into an even greater hole,” Scott said in a press release. “MARTA is simply requesting access to funding that already exists within our capital budget in order to maintain a reasonable level of service that will get us through the economic tsunami we have all had to deal with.”

State lawmakers bungled a chance to resolve the issue during the legislative session, which ended Friday.

Dave Williams of the Atlanta Business Chronicle reports:

Perdue spokesman Bert Brantley said MARTA’s call for a special session is “premature” because the governor hasn’t seen details of the agency’s financial plight. While MARTA officials put that information together for lawmakers to consider as the bill went through the General Assembly, Brantley said, the governor didn’t receive a similar pitch.

“They didn’t come up and ask for help on the bill to begin with,” he said.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

MARTA’s full press release, which includes talk of fare and parking-rate increases, is posted after the jump.
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Jim Galloway reports that MARTA officials recently distributed a memo to state lawmakers outlining the transit agency’s dire situation. Even with cost-cutting measures and fare and parking increases, the memo says, MARTA still runs the risk of drastically cutting service.

That could include shutting down entire rail lines. (The system’s rail spine basically consists of an east-west and north-south line.) Galloway says a decision about those potential cuts could come at MARTA’s next board meeting on March 30.

MARTA is lobbying for the state to ease restrictions over the one-cent sales tax levied in Atlanta, Fulton and DeKalb Counties that provides much of the transit agency’s funding. Under current law, MARTA — considered by mobility mavens as the transit “spine” of the metro region — can only use 50 percent of the generated revenue on operating costs. It bears mentioning, once again, that MARTA is the largest transit agency in the United States that does not receive operating assistance from the state.

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The state Senate yesterday passed two bills that could give MARTA more choices about its funding — as well as an opportunity to earn some extra cash.

The first, Senate Bill 120, would allow the transit agency to decide how it uses the one-cent sales tax it collects in Atlanta and Fulton and DeKalb Counties. (Currently, that sales tax — which accounts for more than half MARTA’s funding — must be split evenly on capital projects and operating costs.)

Senate Bill 89 would allow the food and drinks to be consumed at transit stations. If passed, the measure would allow MARTA to contract with vendors who could sell items at stations. Riders would still be prohibited from eating or drinking on MARTA buses and trains. You can still bring a gun on the train, though.

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MARTA officials today said in a press release that a new economic forecast predicts the transit agency’s budget woes will worsen.

The latest economic forecast issued in December 2008 for MARTA by the Georgia State Economic Forecasting Center predicts a further worsening of its current fiscal crisis by an additional $10 million. The forecast also predicts MARTA will experience a cumulative loss of more than $1.2 billion in sales tax revenue over the next ten years – that is up an additional $588 million from its fall 2008 report.

Last month, MARTA — which, it will be noted once again, is the metro region’s largest transit agency and the only one in the nation that doesn’t receive operating funds from the state  — announced it faced a $60 million operating budget shortfall for the fiscal year. MARTA officials asked lawmakers two weeks ago to allow greater flexibility for the one-cent sales tax revenue that funds more than half the agency’s operations.

Agency officials will hold a series of meetings next week to inform the public about potential changes. (The list of locations follows after the jump.)

And on that cheerful note, I’m out of here. Have a great weekend!

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The recession is taking its toll on MARTA.

MARTA General Manager and CEO Bev Scott says “devastating” drops in revenue collected from local sales taxes — which comprise 52 percent of its operating budget — has led to a shortfall of at least $60 million.

It’s worth mentioning that nearly every state contributes to its largest metropolitan area’s transit system’s operating costs — but Georgia does not.

Scott will hold a press conference to discuss the problem on Monday at MARTA’s Piedmont Road headquarters. It will begin immediately after the regularly scheduled Board of Directors meeting at 1:30 p.m.

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Rumors are like carnivorous pigeons — it’s best to shoot ‘em down before they cause trouble. (ba dum bum)

There’s been talk in some circles that Bev Scott, CEO and General Manager of MARTA, might leave the transit agency to take a position with Pres.-elect Barack Obama’s administration. Scott, a 30-year transit veteran, joined MARTA late last year and was a sought-after talent — so much so that the agency’s board paid $455,609 to former GM Richard McCrillis to step down early. In October, she was elected chair of the American Public Transportation Association.

Last night at 8:30 p.m., Scott — who was still at work — returned a call I placed to ask her about the rumors. She left this voicemail:

Hi, Thomas, Bev Scott of MARTA, here. I’m not interviewing for a position in the Obama administration. I don’t want to suggest — I have had several people that have contacted me, I’m not trying to suggest it was Pres.-elect Obama (laughs) — but they’ve talked to me [to see] if I had an interest in being considered for something.

You got me here in Atlanta (laughs). I said this was my last system and I’m gonna give it everything I can. I love the region and the people. We got a lot of challenges in front of us. I’m not getting it started and not seeing it through. Thank you very much for the call. Not doing any interviewing for anything. OK, take care, sir. Bye bye.

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MARTA CEO and General Manager Beverly Scott, who was recently appointed chair of the American Public Transportation Association, testified before a U.S. House committee today and urged Congress to pass legislation that would inject sorely-needed funds into transit projects across the country.

APTA, Scott says, recently identified 559 “ready-to-go” projects in the United States worth $8 billion that would help create jobs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. She also asked the government step in and examine financial agreements — which  I’ll warn you are rather complex but good to wrap your head around — transit agencies made with companies such as AIG that are in danger of unraveling because of Wall Street’s meltdown.

To read her full testimony, click here. Read about how Georgia specifically could benefit from increased transit investment after the jump.

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MARTA CEO and General Manager Bev Scott has been elected chair of the American Public Transportation Assocation. According to MARTA, she’ll focus on the re-authorization of federal funding for public transportation agencies.

From the transit agency:

Atlanta, GA (October 2008) – MARTA CEO and General Manager, Dr. Beverly A. Scott, was elected chair of the board of directors for the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) on Sunday, October 5, 2008, during the organization’s annual meeting in San Diego, California.

As chair of the APTA Board of Directors, Dr. Scott will oversee the operations of the national organization, which works to improve public transportation throughout the United States and Canada. APTA has more than 1,500 organizational members. Dr. Scott takes the helm of the organization during a particularly exciting yet challenging time for public transportation. Recent statistics provided by APTA show that in FY 2008 the industry experienced more than 10.3 billion trips, which is its largest number of trips in a fifty year period. But, as ridership increased over the past year, the industry was strained by poor economic conditions, budget cuts and rising fuel costs.

Rest of the release follows after the jump.

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At a symposium organized by the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce several months ago, the president of Charlotte, N.C.’s chamber said that his city, which is one-sixth the size of metro Atlanta but still a fierce competitor in attracting businesses and residents, enjoyed a distinct advantage over Georgia: Charlotte is more nimble, he said, and learns from the metro region’s mistakes.

Our more-nimble competitor last week showcased one of the perks such an advantage allows and hosted members of the Transit Planning Board, a multi-agency effort that includes some of the bigger noodles in Georgia’s transportation-planning alphabet soup — MARTA, GRTA, ARC and DOT. The centerpiece of the visit was LYNX, Charlotte’s upstart light-rail line. The project began service earlier this year, has seen ridership numbers exceed initial estimates, and was brought to life partly by a funding strategy that allowed a region to levy a local option sales tax on itself. Transit advocates in metro Atlanta hope a similar version currently navigating its way through the General Assembly will jumpstart the region’s lackluster and antiquated transportation situation. The resolution passed the House last week and now awaits tinkering in a conference committee.

The TPB recently unveiled Concept 3, its own multi-year vision for metro Atlanta’s transportation future which also includes light-rail. To view the agency’s plan, click here. Below are upcoming public meetings about the plan:

• April 1, 2008 — Cobb Central Library 266 Roswell Street, Marietta, GA from 3:30 PM – 7:30 PM

• April 17, 2008 — Education Room, Southern Regional Hospital, 11 Upper Riverdale, Road SW, Riverdale, GA from 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM

• April 19, 2008 — Atlanta Planning Advisory Board, Atlanta City Hall, 55 Trinity Avenue, Atlanta, GA starting at 10:00 AM

• April 29, 2008 — Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, 235 Andrew Young International Boulevard, Atlanta, GA from 3:30 PM – 7:00 PM

TPB Chairman Eldrin Bell and MARTA General Manager Bev Scott, who both attended the Charlotte visit, found out about the House’s vote on Friday via BlackBerry. After the jump, view how they reacted to the news.

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For 30 years, MARTA CEO Beverly Scott knew little about Atlanta aside from what she saw out of a hotel lobby on Peachtree Road. Today, as a resident, she’s blown away by the neighborhoods.

“They’re all over!” she said today after addressing politicians, civic leaders and stakeholders at the annual “State of MARTA” luncheon at the Georgia Freight Railroad Depot next to Underground Atlanta. “I go to this coffee shop on Edgewood [Javaology], my church is right there on Boulevard, and I love it.”

The only problem, of course, is getting to all these gems.

Since Scott took the helm of Atlanta’s underfunded and beleaguered transit agency, she’s been the recipient of glowing praise for her ability to speak directly and not walk on egg shells about what changes need to be made. That was on display today.

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The MARTA board is expected to vote today to approve Sacramento Regional Transit head Beverly Scott as new general manager. The vote — largely a “legal formality,” as the Sacramento Bee quoted MARTA board member Clara Axam in an Aug. 28 article — is a pre-emptive move by MARTA to snatch transit manager talent as other agencies around the country are hunting top talent. Scott is the only candidate under consideration and will succeed Richard McCrillis.

“Dr. Scott is one of the most highly regarded, sought-after transit professionals in the nation,” the Rev. Walter L. Kimbrough, MARTA’s board chairman, said in a released statement. “We had to demonstrate our interest right away — and we are convinced that the excellent job Richard McCrillis has done over the last year makes it possible for MARTA to attract a candidate of this caliber.”

Her new job — which comes with a $250,000 salary, according to agency officials quoted in the article — may carry many of the same challenges Scott faced in Sacramento. RT, as Sacramento’s transit authority is known, has seen its share of route reductions, layoffs, price hikes and dwindling ridership during her tenure. She leaves behind a $171,684 salary and was reportedly being wooed by several other transit agencies around the country.

Prior to her five years in California, Scott worked at the Rhode Island Public Transit District.

So how is she? Quoth the Bee…

“She is a strong transit advocate as well as a manager, and that takes a bit of balance,” Sacramento Transportation Authority Executive Director Brian Williams said. “Sacramento is the richer for having her for five years.”

But why not hear the voice of the people, as seen in the comments of the Bee article…

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