• Link to these meetings
• "STREETCAR EAST EXTENSION. Virtual Project Update" (MARTA pdf document)
• Link to last year's meeting May 27, 2021(video)

This Monday and Tuesday (September 12, 13,) MARTA is holding public meetings about rail on the Beltline.
"The meeting will provide the public with an update on the project and the opportunity to participate in a question-and-answer session with the project team." (MARTA)

This is an opportunity to make our voice heard! Our basic positions are:

1. The Beltline's most urgent need is an LIT lane.  A Light Individualized Transportation (LIT) lane would separate walkers from wheels.
2. The Beltline is a park, not a rail corridor.  Running rail through the Beltline could damage the park experience.

Please attend the MARTA meetings and voice your concerns.  This Monday's meeting is in person, and Tuesday's meeting is on Zoom.

MARTA MEETINGS
1.
In-Person Public Meeting
Monday, September 12 • 6:00 p.m.
Location: Dad’s Garage, 569 Ezzard St, Atlanta, GA 30312
Register: streetcareast.com
Face masks are required
2.
Virtual Public Meeting
Tuesday, September 13 • 6:00 p.m.
Location: Zoom
Register: streetcareast.com

Here are some possible questions to pose:

1. Today's most urgent need is for an LIT track (for bikes, scooters, etc.)  Is there enough room in the right-of-way to add both an LIT lane and rail? (The "Proposed Plan Views" suggest that there is enough room, for most of the way.) Or can LIT and light rail share the same track?
2. Construction of light rail will presumably takes some years.  Will that disrupt use of the current Beltline?
3. The streetcar does not stop at North Ave. (nor at Ponce de Leon.)  But aren't those connection points for other transit lines?
   
4. Can we run transit to Ponce City Market but avoid the Beltline? Could street cars be routed on North Avenue or Glen Iris?
5. The "Proposed Plan Views" show "Safety and Security Protection" running nearly the entire length of the rails. Is a barrier needed?  In Salt Lake City the street car has no such barrier.
6. How will the rail and the safety barriers affect access to  commercial establishments?
   
7. Can MARTA provide a demonstration/mock-up of rail on the Beltline?  How visually intrusive are the electrical towers? What kind of fence will run alongside the tracks?  Will the pedestrian track be squeezed even tigher? Perhaps a mockup will  alleviate concerns that rail will hurt the Beltline experience. (Similar demonstration projects have been done in Atlanta.)
   

Some important excerpts from "STREETCAR EAST EXTENSION. Virtual Project Update" (MARTA pdf document):

• Beltline "Roll Plot".  The red line running the length of the trail is a safety barrier for the train. (Sky blue shows pedestrian crossings.) The barrier is long!
  

• Cross section of trail. Note how rail consumes most of the space, leaving only a narrow pedestrian space. Note also the future barriers along the tracks.
  

If among us we ask 2-3 questions, we can make MARTA understand that there is real concern about saving the Beltline.

The meeting should be informative -- and fun.  Please attend! :-)

See you there!

Hans
www.SaveTheBeltline.net

A good article from Urbanize.com: https://atlanta.urbanize.city/post/streetcar-expansion-beltline-marta-update-nears-whats-your-wish

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