Box 21, Folder 4, Document 11

Dublin Core

Text Item Type Metadata

Text



RAPID TRANSIT

PROGRESS

METROPOLITAN ATLANTA RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY



“MARTA REPORTS TO THE PEOPLE IT SERVES...”

FEBRUARY. 1967
VOL, 2. NO, 2

HOUSE APPROVES FIRST
STATE MONEY FOR MARTA





The first state financial aid for rapid transit was approved
by the House of Representatives Monday, Feb. 20, as the
House passed and sent to the Senate the Appropriations
bill for 1968-69. The Appropriations Bill allocates to
MARTA $250,000 during each year of the biennium (Fis-
cal 1968, 69), or a total of $500,000. The state grant,
when finally approved, will be used as “matching funds”
for $2 million in federal funds. The two grants will enable
MARTA to begin some detail design and acquisition of some
right-of-way necessary to preserve the route alignments.

The state funds were included in the budget prepared
by then-Governor Carl Sanders, and in the official budget
submitted by Gov. Lester Maddox. A Constitutional amend-
ment approved in the 1968 General Election allows the
state to pay up to “10 percent of the total cost” of the rapid
transit system.

The House Appropriations Committee, with Rep. James
H. “Sloppy” Floyd as chairman, conducted hearings for
three weeks on the budget requests, with MARTA repre-
sentatives appearing Feb. 8. Representing the Metropolitan
Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority were Henry L. Stuart, Gen-
eral Manager; John Coil, Resident Manager, Parsons Brinck-
erhoff-Tudor-Bechtel; Stell Huie, MARTA Counsel; Glenn



Rep. James H. “Sloppy” Floyd, Chairman, presides over meeting
of House Appropriations Committee (center back), with Vice Chair-
man Colquitt H. Odom at his left, and Secretary William J. Wiggins;

Bennett, Secretary of the MARTA Board and Executive
Director, Atlanta Region Metropolitan Planning Commis-
sion; and King Elliot, MARTA Public Information
Director.

Stuart discussed the creation of MARTA, the early and
current work done on rapid transit, and the revision of the
1962 plan which is now under way. Stuart noted that local
financial support has been excellent, and that all requests
made for federal funds thus far have been approved.
“Through 1967 we will have spent or committed $1.5
million to the project,” he added, “and with federal funds
committed, state aid for the first time, and the federal funds
we anticipate getting, the total funded project will be about
$5 million.” “This will bring us right up to the detail design
stage, and to a time of decision on the proper methods of
financing the construction of the system,” Stuart said.

John Coil, PBTB, outlined current work under way in
preliminary engineering, soil-tests, revision of the 1962
plan, and in other areas of work.

Following the presentations of Stuart and Coil, members
of the committee asked a number of questions; the more
pertinent questions and the MARTA answers are found
on page 2 and 3.



man in foreground is Rep. Jones Lane, a member of the committee.
Legislators listen carefully as answers are given to questions put
to those appearing before the House Appropriations Committee.








METROPOLITAN ATLANTA
RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY

808 GLENN BLOG.*120 MARIETTA ST., N.W.
ATLANTA, GA. 30303*PHONE 524-5711

“DIRECTED BY THE GEORGIA STATE
LEGISLATURE TO DEVELOP A RAPID
TRANSIT SYSTEM FORTHE 5-COUNTY
METROPOLITAN ATLANTA AREA.”

Edited by Kine Evuiorr

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OFFICERS:

Ricuarp H. Ricu, Chairman Roy A, BLount, Vice Chairman
Rosert F, ADAMSON, Treasurer GLENN E, BENNETT, Secretary

CITY OF ATLANTA:

Mitus B. LANE, JR. L. D. Mitton
RicHarp H. RIcu RAWSON HAVERTY

CLAYTON COUNTY:
EpcGar BLALOcK
DEKALB COUNTY:

Roy A. BLOUNT Dr. SANFoRD ATWooD
FULTON COUNTY:
W. A. PULVER MitcHett C. BisHop

GWINNETT COUNTY:
K. A. McMILLon
COBB COUNTY (Observer)
Otis A. Brumsy, Jr.
MARTA STAFF:

Henry L. Stuart, General Manager _
Kinc Etuiott, Director of Public Information
H. N. Jounson, Secretary to General Manager











“RAPID TRANSIT MUST
HAVE TOP PRIORITY!”

“The development of a rapid transit system is an ab-
solute ‘must,’ and it must have a top priority if we are
to solve, effectively and permanently, our transportation
problems,” said Mitchell C. Bishop, College Park business-
man and Fulton County member of the MARTA Board.
Bishop, a former Director of the Division of Traffic and
Safety of the State Highway Department, stated that
“while we have made valiant efforts to solve our traffic
problems, so far we have only been nibbling at the edges
and making piecemeal attacks on our
dilemma!”

“Looking at the situation from an
engineering standpoint,” he continued,
“a completed and operating rapid
transit system is the framework
around which we can build all other
solutions to the problem of efficient
and safe transportation inside this

: = great Metropolitan Atlanta area. With
Mitchell C. Bishop rapid transit transporting 250,000 to
300,000 persons, mostly commuters, every working day, our
streets, highways, and expressways will be able to accom-
modate vehicular traffic and to move that traffic more
efficiently.”

“Another interesting effect rapid transit will have and
indeed is already having,” said Bishop, “is a unifying effect
on all the people of the state. All across the state people
now refer to Atlanta as the home of ‘our Braves’ and ‘our
Falcons’ ; and they take great pride in the fact that these
teams belong to all Georgians. In a similar way, rapid
transit will serve not only the people in its immediate area,
but will benefit all Georgia because of the improvement in
ease of transportation and speed and economy of travel
into and out of our capital city.”

“TI believe rapid transit will have a tremendous effect
on all of Georgia as well as this area,” Bishop concluded.



IRT CONVENTION PLANS

Plans for the upcoming Atlanta Convention of the In-
stitute for Rapid Transit are beginning to take shape. The
convention, to be held at the Atlanta Marriott Motor Hotel
May 24-26, will feature full audience participation in special
study sessions, according to George L. DeMent, President
of IRT.

“We are planning another stimulating program that
should be of great interest not only to IRT members, but
also to many other persons concerned with metropolitan
transportation and planning problems of our growing cities
and urban areas,” said DeMent, who is Chairman of Chi-
cago Transit Board:



George L. DeMent David Q. Gaul

“In addition to our IRT members, we wish to extend
an early invitation to all persons working in the related fields
of metropolitan planning, transportation, and government
to join us in Atlanta for three days of challenging workshop-
study sessions,” said DeMent.

“Nationally prominent experts in the urban transportation
field will present case studies which workshop participants
will analyze. The findings by the participants then will be
reviewed in critiques.”

David Q. Gaul, Executive Secretary of the IRT, says
that “plans for the system proposed for Metropolitan At-
lanta will also be discussed at the convention, which will
highlight the tremendous resurgence of interest in and de-
velopment of rapid transit in this country and Canada.”



LEGISLATORS’

(Members of the House Appropriations Committee had a num-
ber of questions for MARTA representatives on how State aid
would be used; the following are typical questions and answers
from the meeting.)

JAMES H. “SLOPPY” FLOYD, Chairman, House Appropriations
Committee: What do you estimate the total cost of the rapid
transit system?

HENRY L. STUART, MARTA General Manager: The rapid
transit system that we envision to be operational in the middle
of the 1980's will cost in the neighborhood of 450 million dollars.
By the middle of 1970's we will have an operational system in-
complete, and it will have cost approximately 350 million dollars.
As Mr. Coil mentioned, these estimates are now in preparation
in this order of magnitude.

FLOYD: Let me ask you this. Do the citizens in this area have
to vote on some bonds?

STUART: If a tax levy is required that will raise the property
taxes, referenda must be held.

FLOYD: What if the citizens of this area defeat the bond? How
will the State get their money back?

STUART: Such of the money as has been spent for design pur-
poses will not be recoverable; such of it as is in real estate will be
recoverable depending upon the value of the property.

FLOYD: What rate of interest do you think you will have to
pay on 450 million?

STUART: Our financial advisors are basing their plans on 4 and














Members of the legislative delegations from MARTA counties break-
fast with members of the MARTA Board of Directors and staff at
Marriott Jan. 24. Some 17 members of the House and 7 members of
the Senate heard MARTA officials discuss plans and progress in the
development of the rapid transit system proposed for Metropolitan
Atlanta, In the picture, Henry L. Stuart, MARTA General Manager,
is responding to a question from a legislator. Board Chairman Rich-
ard H. Rich presided at the breakfast meeting.

MARTA ACTION: At the February meeting, the
‘Board of Directors ratified the contracts signed by
Henry L. Stuart Feb. 2; one contract defined the scope
of the work to be done with the $369,333 grant from
the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Develop-
ment; the other contract authorized PBTB engineers
to start the work immediately.

Jeff Wingfield, Planning Director, Atlanta Region
Metropolitan Planning Commission, outlined the need
for strong overall plans for downtown Atlanta, and
the part rapid transit could play in implementing such
a plan.








PROG ER
[x o eA - |
METROPOLITA ANTA SARE-PRANSIT AUTH as = hs Bast aezc
* * <2 fs 7 , Sing
ne ay > = -/ Me “,
RL A> Seeman or = / <= i a
808 GLENN BLDG. - 4d0waRET A sT.. & “TATLANTA, CBORGIA 30303 o we nena Se
PHONE 524-5711 (AREA CODE 404) SE X a , ~, a
x zt , rt » — Ee eI Se “ tig ~ |
Ios me “ \l= ~~ ——_
FEBRUARY, 1967—VOL. 2, NO. 2 he a Se

at

% . ~

Hon. Ivan Allen, Jr., Mayor
City of Atlanta :
City Hall

>|





foe a E tel

Henry L. Stuart, MARTA General Manager (left), and Congress-
man Fletcher Thompson, U. S. Representative from Georgia's Fifth
District, discuss some of the proposed rapid transit lines currently
under study by engineering consultants. Rep. Thompson, visiting in
MARTA offices Feb. 10, said that the U. §. agencies in Washington
he has talked to appear to have a high regard for the work being
done by the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority.

Collier B. Gladin, City of Atlanta Planning Director,
discussed progress in the Community Improvement
Plan project and work being done to set up a Model
Cities Program. Referring to the impact rapid transit
will have, he urged continued close coordination of
plans and efforts to achieve orderly development of
the great potential of Atlanta.

The next meeting of the MARTA Board of Di-
rectors will be Tuesday, March 7, 3:30 p.m., in Con-
ference Room 619, the Glenn Building, 120 Marietta
St.. N. W.

—+

% WASHINGTON
AS STON














30303




public items show