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METRO POLITAN ATLANTA RAPID TRANSIT AUTH O RITY " MA-C::,rr,A RT S _T_O_ _THE O_P_L_E_ _IT . .. " _ _ _v ·o _ _ _ _ _ _..Lv..L..ci. _ _ _ _ _ _REP _ _ _O __ __ _ _ _ _PE __ _ _SERVES _______ __ JUNE-JULY, L. 3, 1 96 B No . MARTA-ATS BUSES ARRIVE Ten of the most modern buses ever built, and the only buses of their kind anywhere, were delivered to eager Atlantans July 1, 1968. The arrival of these new buses was especially _s ignificant because it marked the first of many anticipated joint efforts between the Atlanta Transit Sys tem , who is leasing and operating the buses, and MARTA, which purchased the buses. The buses were officially welcomed in a brief ceremony by Richard H. Rich, MARTA Chairman; William P . Maynard , President of Atlanta Transit System ; and C. J. Jacobs, President of Local # 732, which represents the drivers. Mr. Maynard noted that " the buses would immediately be put into service, to se rve riders on routes throughout the city, and give everyone the opportunity to enjoy and inspect the new ve hicles in air-conditioned comfort." The buses, which were built by General Motors, were purchased by MART A under competitive bidding procedures, and will be leased to the Transit Sys tem over a period of ten years. Revenu e to MART A from the lease will pay both the principal and the interest. Mr. Rich outlined the reasons for the purchase. " It is esse nti al to the development of rapid transit for Metropolitan Atl anta that a balanced sys tem of transit be developed, including full y coordinated bus tra nsportation. " He noted th at under the terms of the lease ag reemen t, the Transit System will fu rnish MA RTA with inform ation as to patronage, routes and other information helpful to MARTA in its studi es of a bus feeder system . "Through this rapid transit project," Mr. Rich concluded, "MART A can contribute immediately to relieve some of the transit pressure, and can meanwhile gather much valuable information in regard to the coordination of such facilities in the future ." A prototype of the new vehicles, the first of its kind tested anywhere, has operated in Atl anta since las t fall and greatly exceeded expectations in terms of perform ance and public acceptance. Each bus is powered by a big, new 338 H .P ., V-8 engine that repl aces the stand ard 238 H.P ., V-6 formerly standard in city buses . The greater size of this new engine makes it equal to the task of operating faster and more efficiently in all types of traffic conditions, while powering the air-conditioning system to deliver thermostaticall y controlled comfort. These unique new 47-passenger buses also feature the latest in appearance and comfort styling. New, super-soft foam seats of speci al design, are two inches wider than stand ard with higher seat backs to afford passe ngers greater comfort and leg room . Interiors are tastefully color-h armonized in a fresh, modern decor. Riding comfort has been increased by a more adva nced suspension system and new super V-8 transmission that allows smooth shifts under full engine power and an overdrive feature which cuts-in at speeds over 40 m .p .h. Coupled with the new power pl ant, the vehicles are capable of highw ay speeds up to 65 m.p.h ., with an in crease in operating economy. · The buses which are now in service will be used on various routes throughout the entire system. MA RTA Chairman Richard H . Rich, in driver's seat, hands keys to A TS President W illiam P. M aynard. The ten MART A -owned, ATS-operated air-conditioned buses were placed into service immediately throughout the transit system. s �MARTAcTroN ___________________ At its May meeting, the MARTA Board of Directors agreed to purchase ten air-conditioned buses and lease them to the Atlanta Transit System. The money to buy the buses would be borrowed from a local bank , and the revenue from the lease would be sufficient to pay both principle and interest. ( See story on Page 1.) The Board also agreed to perform additional studies on a Model Cities line for approximately $30,000.00 and on a Buckhead Alternate for approx imately $9,500.00. \ The Board confirmed the appointment of Mr. Ed Gilcrease of Parsons Brinckerhoff-Tudor-Bechtel as MARTA representative to work with the Alan Voorhees firm in the Atlanta Area Transportation Study. ( 'ta I I A. At its June meeting, the Board was advised that the General Motors Corporation was the low bidder on the purchase of the ten air-conditioned buses, at $38,728.68 per bus, with delivery charges specified se parately at $300 .54 each. The Board, by resolution , accepted the General Motors Corporation bid . General Manager Henry L. Stuart recommended a number of additional planning programs as a result of the recent series of public hearings. Stuart reported that the ge neral sentiment expressed at the 12 public hearin gs conducted in late April and in May was favorable toward th e routes and station locations which had been proposed by the engineering consu ltan ts. Stuart stated th at a number of recommendations had been made for modifications, extensions, and additions to the proposed routes. He recommended th at MARTA "undertake a planning program similar in refinement to what is required under Section 701 of th e Housin g Act of 1954 to exa mine the possibilities of the following: I. A line to wa rds the Perry Homes area in Northwest Atlanta. 2. An extension of the West line to Fulton Indust ri al Boulevard. 3. An extension of the East Line past T-285. 4. A line towards South D eKalb County. This line needs only to be studied sufficiently at this time to identify potential corridors. There is no need as yet to perform patron age studi es." Stuart's proposal was adopted by th e Boa rd. Stuart also summari zed the public response at th e 12 public hearin gs. The followin g is a brief acco unt of Stuart's report. EAST POIN T , April 29. East Point and College Park speakers we re outspoken in th eir support of th e projec t and the way in which we a re developing our program. They were delighted that the first hearing was held in their areas. Onl y o ne person spoke in opposition , and he objected to the cost and to taking people out of Eas t Point. LENOX, April 30 . Leading ci ti zens s poke strongly for the project. The Buckhead Alternate excited no interest at the hearing, but since then we have lea rned of co nsiderable feeling in opposition to this alternate. When work on this subject progresses suffi ciently. we should go back for another formal hea rin g. DOWNTOWN, May 2. We received st ron g endorsement from all the business gro ups such as the At lanta Cha mber of Commerce, Cent ra l Atlanta Progress, Inc. , A tl ant a Jaycees, a nd from the Mayor's office. WEST END, May 6. West E nd business, civic and church groups gave us a strong endorsement. They did not place into the record their ea rli er req uest fo r a different station site. We are continuing to wo rk with them on th is matte r. CLAYTON COUNTY, May 9 (Forest Par/.:). We received I 00 per cent support from the C lay ton County Comm issioners and gratify ing suppo!1 from business a nd other leaders. One man a ppeared to protes t cost es timates which were not at issue at the hearin g, and to objec t to the continuance of the C layton County vacancy on th e MARTA Board. DECATUR, May 13. We received strong support from business and political leaders, but they made it very clear that more lines are needed to serve DeKalb County. Strong support was given to th e D ecatur Alternate, which would pl ace the station close r to the Courthouse Square. One speaker expressed concern abou t costs. DORAVILLE, May 15. This hearin g was also productive in that local speakers gave us advice about the schedule of development they expect. In one word, "quicker." They recognize th at Doravi lle/ Chamblee is a long way out, but a prolonged development schedule is not acceptab le. A stated reas on for the impatience of North D eKal b County residents is the crowded condition of the Northeast E xpressway. WEST SIDE, May 16. A very productive hearing in tha t communications were established with a substantial pa rt of the Negro community. We received a list of requ ests from the Atlanta Summit Leadership Conference, and we we re ab le to respond to them positively. CANDLER PARK, May 20. We used a different communications pr0gram to generate atte ndance, and learned th at the method used for the West Side he arin g was more effective. Statements made most often by speakers related to requests for assurances about no job discrimination. AME ZION CHURCH, Ma y 22. Several speake rs took exception to our arrangement for the West Lake Station . They place more importance on our use of vacant land th an we do, and th ey do not pl ace as mu ch importance on street access as we do . Most speakers addressed themselves to objections to our organization ; specifically, the absence of Negro employees o n th e staff a nd th e lim ited Negro represent ation on the Board. We explained this as best we cou ld . SANDY SPRINGS, May 27. Speakers presented an understandin g th at Sandy Springs is not a first priority, and they expressed quite clearly th at they expect to be pa rt of our project so me day. SOUTH DEKALB, May 29. There was so me expression of interest and need for a rap id tra nsit line into South DeKa lb Count y where non e is now shown. However, the proponents of this South . DeKalb Line a lso stated th at th ey do not travel into At la nt a very often . METROPOLITAN ATLANTA RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY 8 0 8 GLENN BLO G . 120 M A RIETT A ST . , N .W . ATLAN T A. GA . 303 03 · PH ONE 524-5711 0 " DIRECTED BY THE GEORGIA STATE LEGISLATURE TO DEVELOP A RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM FOR THE 5 -COUNTY METROPOLITAN AT LANT A Edited by AREA." KING 'ELLIOTT BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFI CEH S , H1c 11 A11u H. H1 c 11. C h air nHm H ElWEIIT J. IJICK SON. T r CflSUr er H OY A. r ic,: Chairmtlll B I. U UN T. E D M UN I> \X". H t:C II ES , S ccrctan CITY OF ATLA NTA, Jou:-; c. L. D. :\111.To:-. WILSON R1 C l·IAIID H . RI C H llAW SON 1-fA\' E HT \' CLAYTO N CO L'NT Y , S. Tm ETT CAT II Y DE KALR CO L' NTY , H oY A. Br.01 ·,q Dn. S ANFouo :\ T w oou Fl' LTO N COt.::\TY, Jo11 N C. S TA T ON i\llTCH E LI. C. 131 ~ 11 01 ' G\I I NNETT COL ' \ T\ , K . A. :\ 1c , 111.L1u:" CO ll U CO L'~TY \ O h~t· 1\' Cr) On:- :\ . BnL:>illlY . J n.

II AHTA STAFF,

II E:-. 11 , l.. :=-n 1A11T. G1' 111•ral l fo 1wf!1'r EAnL \\' . N•:1.so:--.. Clii1 •/ E11g1111·,·r l... 1:-.l. E 1.1. 101T. /Jir 1..·,·t<•r of Pulilit' ln{ M111,1tw11 H . :--:. Jo 11 -.;-.o...-. Ad111ir1i.s. tr11rii,• ·l <\i, t,rnt 111 C ,•11,•, 11/ 1[ ,111111:,·r �"MARTA CHART/\'. ROUSING SUCCESS! The ··MART A C HA RTA"" inspection tour of M ontreal and Toronco rapid tran.sit systems was an eye -opening e.~perience. according to those who made the trip June 12 and 13. Henry L. Swart. General Manager of !he Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. said, "I talked to many of those who went, and they invariably stated they were impresse d with the two systems, and acrced that something similar ;5 needed :o l\l etropolitan At!:i.nta. Eve ryone a g reed that the stat ions ill 1'fontrcal were beautifully designed and were well-coord inated with !he buildings on 1hc surface:· he co n1inucd. "The bus tour of the surface development around the rapid tnrnsit stations in Toronto was of gT<,at in terest to all of us," he slated. ·'\Ve were able to sec for ourselves the tremendous growth which has taken place within a fivc-minuto walk of the stations. and I believecveryoneofuswasvisuali:dngwhat might take place around s ta.tion_s i~ - Allan\~. Decatur. the Tri-Cities, Doraville and all other "" One of the most interesting reactions, l think. was the cx!cmporaneous organization of the "Exc,,va tion "69 Club" hy .several of the participants. Their mono ls .. Dig!" and they arc convinced that we need1ogctstartedasso,;,naspossibteaemallybuild ingarapidtransi t syslem. I agree with them one-hundred percent."" Stuart said The inspection trip, dubbed ··MARTA C H AR.TA."" w:i.~ organized by MARTA to allow local leaders the opportunity to ride modern rapid transit and to observe the impact rapid tra nsit has h"d on real cst:ue development and other phase£ of activity in the 1....-0 Canadian cicies. Those accepting 1he invitat ion made the trip at their own expense The group included a number of mayors. coumy commissioners. city aldermen and councilmen. members of the Georgia General Assembly. archi1ec1S, engineers. planners. real estat.: developers. and 01hers. Eight other persons who could not be accommod:itcd o n the charter flight flew by commercial air lines and made !he tours with the ""MARTA CHAR.TA" group. The Eastern Air Lines chann jet left Atlanta at 8:53 :1 .m. Wednesday. June 12, and arrived in Montreal shortly before noon. T he group toured the Montreal METRO during the afternoon. and new to Toron1o that evening by Air Canad;t commercial serv ic e. The visitors toured the Toronto system Thursday morning. June 13. as pan of the J nstitute for R;1pid Transit conference, which was in progress in Toronto. The group retu rned by charter jet that afternoon, arriving in Atlanta at 6cl."i p .m ,,j Mr. Rober/ Haimmlr, member rhe ,\fomreal Transportaiion Comminio11. ;:reels ""A·fARTA C/f,IUTA"" 111t·m/!a,· <11 Crcnw~ie SratiOI! Us1<•11i11g ar,· John C<1lf101111. EOA (11·i1!, hack /0 ,·«111era); Leland Ve<1/ Stmc ~ligl1way D,,part1111•11t of G.-or;:ia; am/ S1e/l 1/uie. A1ARTA ,\frGil! Sw1ion ;_,- 011e: of 1//c most co/or/11/ um/ /1<•«.-ily us<'d ;1mion., 011 A1ETRO system fo Toro/1/o, ""MARTA CIIAUTA"" members arri ~ed m 1hc .,·.,bway stotio11 hy /ms. 1he w<1y hwulreds of rl1011sw1ds of comnuu.-rs ,lo d<1y, ""d wu/ked dowu cft>a11 , we/1-/igl,ted A erial ,•icw sl,ows c/11stas of l,igh-rise dc,·e/opme111 l!rO""" titre,, Toro11/0 ,uhway s/<1tio11s S1<bway para/Ids Yo11;:.,S1 corridors ,.,.cJ, 10 trnin p/wform<. ,Hrs. Lithangia Robiuson. V<1lCo,,,,.,,.,,;,y C/,.l,; Scuator Leroy Joh11so11, a11</ Atla111<1 Alder11um Q. V. IVilliamsou ure ill //,,: forcr;ro1<11d. hacl,e~ Toronro mak,·s goml use of ""Bus ·,,• Ride'" ,en•ice. Buses circ11/are through re.,idem ial areas. pick U/J llundr.-ds of //101<somls of people each day, """ de/i>'er them to a 11enrby suhw<1y s1mio11 for comp/e1io11 of their trip ,/own- Gro1111 wailing /0 board train inc/,u/,: Gwim,e11 R ep. Norris Nush (iu gr,,,,,, ""ii): Commission Chair"'"" R<l)' Aforgau (second from righ1); """ ,HAR1A Gwi1wn1 Directm·, l(c,o Afr,\,fil/011(rig/,1). a,..;,,,,a, Fu//Or, Commissioner Walter Mi/Chell, MARTA Chairman Richard H Rich. and Srate Highw<1y Dep<1rlme111 P/a,.,oer Ldaml V-,a/ are ill cemer of group of members of ""MARTA CHARTA'" a,od 1/,e fnsritule for Rapid Tra11sit. ""A·IARTA C HARTA "" ••isirors inspect exrnnlll dn•e/opme/11 w Victoria Sq,wr-.- Statio11 . METRO o:ir is part of higi,-rise office building which comains1/ie /llonuea/Sux:k Exd1a11ge amt 01/,er business offices. Atw<Ucr Swtio11 ope11s 011/0 a 11111/1i-s1ory de,·dopm"m cot1tai,ring ,Hirac/e A/art.'" b11siHes.,·. ,'hoppin!,;. m"I ,,,11,•r1oi1m1<•m c,-nt,•r h11ilt aro11nd " cncloud mall . Tl,e ma" who dc,·elop"'I this ce,uc,· ,,,,,. e.t preJ"H'd imcrest "ill ,he 1,0,·,·ib;Jiri,-s of" ,·imi/ar proiC<"t di /11AR"rA"s propos,·d stmion iu V.-cm11r. A special train cond11cud MARTA people 011</ members of the /11s1itureforRt1p1d Transit on tourofemireeast-west line. f"ive A1fmuo Aldermen talk things o,·e:r "' J'oromo subway statiou . Left to righl ore Rober/ Denni.r, l/ug/1 Pierce, Charlie Le/twicl,. J<1ck S11mmers, ondlVilliamKnigl,t �