Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority - History

History

MARTA was originally proposed as a rapid transit agency for the five largest metropolitan Atlanta counties: DeKalb, Fulton, Clayton, Gwinnett, and Cobb counties. MARTA was formed by an act of the Georgia General Assembly in 1965. In the same year, four of the five metropolitan area counties (Clayton, DeKalb, Fulton, and Gwinnett) and the City of Atlanta passed a referendum authorizing participation in the system, but the referendum failed in Cobb County. Although a 1968 referendum to fund MARTA failed, in 1971, Fulton and DeKalb Counties successfully passed a 1% sales tax increase to pay for operations, while Clayton and Gwinnett counties overwhelmingly rejected the tax in referendum, fearing the introduction of crime and "undesirable elements". In 1971, the agency agreed to purchase the existing, bus-only Atlanta Transit Company and on February 17, 1972 the sale was completed for US$12.9 million giving the agency control over all public transit.

Construction began on the MARTA system in 1975, with the first rail service commencing on June 30, 1979. The system has since built most of the proposed rail lines, as well as stations in Sandy Springs and North Springs which were not included in the original plan. The missing rail segments include a Tucker-North DeKalb line with service to Emory University and North Druid Hills, a Northwest line with service to Brookwood and Northside Drive, extension of the West line to Brownlee-Boulder Park near Fairburn Road, extension of the Proctor Creek line to Perry Homes, and a branch off the south line to Hapeville.