Comments on: How Did This Happen ?

By: Amber

Amber — Mon, 15 Aug 2005 06:25:47 +0000

Brad - that’s true about most of the DART stations, but DART is even worse than MARTA in terms of actually going places. but, granted, it’s a lot newer too. It has potential to be good - but last I checked, they weren’t really working much on expanding it. When I lived in Dallas (Aug. 2003-March 2004) I took DART to work… the ride was about an hour, almost the entire length of the Red line… I lived in Plano and worked in Oak Cliff. It was definitely better than driving. However, one thing that annoyed the crap out of me was the fact that DART didn’t go to the airport. To get there, you had to transfer to the TRE and pay an additional fare. It was just too big of a pain in the ass. I think for any new transit system to get ridership, the airport needs to be one of the first places it goes.

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 14 Aug 2005 16:00:51 +0000

Thankfully, they’re rehabilitating all the old trains, ripping out the carpets, installing rubberized flooring. Bad news is it’s getting done two cars at a time, so it’ll be a little while before we start seeing the real results of the “Getting as Good as New” program.

By: Carl Shapiro

Carl Shapiro — Sun, 14 Aug 2005 07:16:05 +0000

Or even better, if you go to GSU, you can buy a monthly pass for $26. Its amazing isnt it?

I hate to say this, but the north line is much easier to use. the stations are newer, and seem to be easier to use. The North Springs and Sandy Springs stations both have ridestores. Usually the trains are nicer, but recently we have been getting the tacky 70’s carpet again. Oh well. I think MARTA ignores the east-west line because most of the people in the north are marto-phobic.

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Sat, 13 Aug 2005 19:47:29 +0000

I totally agree with you on the fare thing - if you don’t regularly travel to one of the stations with a Ridestore, you’re pretty much stuck buying your tokens a few at a time (except that, as a GSU student, you COULD go buy bulk tokens or farecards at the Auxiliary Services Office at GSU, unless they’ve changed that). The only think I like about those new displays in the station is that it tells me how long I’m going to have to wait and how many cars the train will be (so that I can get far enough down the platform to get in the first car, which is usually less crowded).

By: Joseph G

Joseph G — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 06:17:54 +0000

This will all be a moot point soon, anyway. MARTA will move away from the flat-rate model & start charging more or less based on where you get on/off. That makes more sense to me (although it will probably mean that I’ll end up paying more when I actually do ride).

By: Brad

Brad — Fri, 12 Aug 2005 01:00:22 +0000

Just FYI - MARTA didn’t spend any money on the tv’s in the stations or bus’s.

But otherwise I understand your pains, I think most do. But I am also not a fan of the style of infrastructure MARTA uses, the stations were designed as uselss marvels of modernism - as large as possible it seems.

Then I visit Dallas & their light rail - it takes just a short minute to get to the platform rather than the maze of stairs & walkways (my station is MLK).