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"Transportation Mayor or Folding Chair Mayor" -- Which is it Mayor Dickens?
"Transportation Mayor or Folding Chair Mayor" -- Which is it Mayor Dickens?
Is Mayor Dickens doing a 180? We’ll continue moving straightforward
Is Mayor Dickens doing a 180? We’ll continue moving straightforward

Are you as gobsmacked as we are by the mayor’s latest interview?!? Has he really done a 180, or will this keep going and end up as a 360? Although we've walked straight forward on our mission from day 1, we're getting dizzy.

Join us at the Inman Park Festival Parade, or join our table!
Join us at the Inman Park Festival Parade, or join our table!
All Roads Lead To The BeltLine
All Roads Lead To The BeltLine
Thank you to Mayor Andre Dickens
Thank you to Mayor Andre Dickens
BeltLine Rail Rally
BeltLine Rail Rally
There's a BeltLine Rail Opposition Meeting at 6 PM Tonight!
There's a BeltLine Rail Opposition Meeting at 6 PM Tonight!
Downtown Residents Want Eastside Streetcar Extension
Downtown Residents Want Eastside Streetcar Extension

In this latest Rail Writers column, we hear from downtown resident Lauren von Hollen, who gives a perspective on commuting by bicycle to the BeltLine from her downtown home. We haven't featured this perspective before, and it is an important one as there are thousands of others like Lauren who live downtown and who will benefit from the Streetcar East Extension, which entered the final design phase with MARTA consultant HDR last month. Read on for her perspective.

It’s Transit Equity Day! What’s in store for BeltLine rail in 2024?
It’s Transit Equity Day! What’s in store for BeltLine rail in 2024?
Living in Inman Park Across the Street From the BeltLine
Living in Inman Park Across the Street From the BeltLine
NPUs Voice Support Again for BeltLine Rail
NPUs Voice Support Again for BeltLine Rail
BeltLine Rail *IS* Better Atlanta Transit
BeltLine Rail *IS* Better Atlanta Transit

Our city’s leaders must hear from you. Tell them you still support Atlanta’s longstanding, expert vetted, equity-driven transit and economic development plan. It’s taken a huge commitment from the people of Atlanta to get this far. Don’t let the NIMBYs get BeltLine rail off track!

Fixing Atlanta Streetcar Problems will Secure ABI's Vision for 22 miles of Beltline Light Rail
Fixing Atlanta Streetcar Problems will Secure ABI's Vision for 22 miles of Beltline Light Rail
Let’s Get Loud!
Let’s Get Loud!
Confused by what's happening Thursday at the MARTA Board Meeting?
Confused by what's happening Thursday at the MARTA Board Meeting?
Atlantans Believe In the Complete Vision of the BeltLine - Now Build It
Atlantans Believe In the Complete Vision of the BeltLine - Now Build It
IMPORTANT: BeltLine Rail Now Needs YOU to Turn Out for the July 13 MARTA Board Meeting!
IMPORTANT: BeltLine Rail Now Needs YOU to Turn Out for the July 13 MARTA Board Meeting!
Take ARC’s Survey regarding Rail Transit
Take ARC’s Survey regarding Rail Transit
Tune In to BeltLine Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) Update presentation at ABI’s quarterly briefing.
Tune In to BeltLine Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) Update presentation at ABI’s quarterly briefing.
Help BRN Protect "More MARTA" Funding at the 5/18 Public Hearing
Help BRN Protect "More MARTA" Funding at the 5/18 Public Hearing
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Join Our Transit Celebration - Walk with your neighbors at Inman Park Parade April 29th
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Let's fix the Streetcar while Extending it on the BeltLine

Fixing the Streetcar is a great opportunity for MARTA and the City to build public trust and ensure a successful extension to and along the BeltLine by showing we know how to deliver a world-class transit project.

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What Does Transit Equity Look Like in Atlanta?

Transit Equity Day is a day of action celebrated on Rosa Parks birthday. You may be asking: What’s so equitable about the BeltLine? When the people of Atlanta set out on this reparative journey together two decades ago, equity was front and center. It’s been a struggle to maintain that focus and determination. But we must. It won’t be perfect, but the journey will at least take us a step or two in the right direction. Together we can tear down barriers to opportunity and move closer to becoming one united community.

Why is MARTA extending the Downtown Streetcar?
Why is MARTA extending the Downtown Streetcar?

Streetcar East Extension is the best path forward to BeltLine rail. We don’t have time to wait longer - - the time is now. It might seem that the place to start BeltLine rail would be on the south side, or west side, or someplace near a major MARTA station along the 13+ miles of looping corridor that the city owns on the BeltLine. But a closer look at both the history and the practicalities make the decision to start at the eastern end of the current downtown streetcar clearer and more logical.

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Shakeup at MARTA is an opportunity for more and better transit
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Opening Irwin Street to people and the kind of city we want
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Take MARTA Survey: People, Transit and Irwin Street

Do you want to live in a city that puts people first — prioritizing safe streets and making it possible to walk, cycle, roll, or scoot more often? You may have noticed MARTA, Atlanta BeltLine Inc., and the City of Atlanta took an exciting step toward BeltLine rail today.

At Long Last, the train is coming…
At Long Last, the train is coming…
We Voted for More MARTA, not Less
We Voted for More MARTA, not Less

Before we talk about cuts, Atlanta really needs to see our mayor, city council, and transit officials prove they're fighting for More MARTA too.

SURPRISE: MARTA already spent nearly half the More MARTA tax proceeds on enhanced bus operations
SURPRISE: MARTA already spent nearly half the More MARTA tax proceeds on enhanced bus operations

You probably still have a few unanswered questions about how MARTA is choosing to spend the More MARTA Atlanta ½-cent sales tax.

 

The voices of 10,000

BeltLine Rail Now co-chair Matthew Rao (center) and volunteers Beth Smith (left) and Robyn Turner show off the 10,000-signature petition they delivered to City Hall on February 4.

BeltLine Rail Now co-chair Matthew Rao (center) and volunteers Beth Smith (left) and Robyn Turner show off the 10,000-signature petition they delivered to City Hall on February 4.

February 4 marked Transit Equity Day — the birthday of Rosa Parks, whose refusal to give up her seat on a segregated bus sparked the Civil Rights Movement. And it was on Transit Equity Day that BeltLine Rail Now volunteers delivered a petition with 10,000 of your signatures to the office of Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, calling on the city of Atlanta and MARTA to start laying tracks for BeltLine rail on an aggressive timeline.

Under the current timeline, the first planned segment, a 2-mile link from the end of the existing Atlanta Streetcar to Ponce City Market, won’t open until 2027. Most of the 45 neighborhoods around the BeltLine won’t be connected by reliable rail transit until the late 2040s or later. And the neighborhoods that will be last to be served are the ones where people depend the most on transit.

Along with that petition, BeltLine Rail Now delivered a document that highlights how the BeltLine can improve transit equity and affordability in neighborhoods where home prices and rents are on the rise, threatening to displace longtime residents. You can read it here.