STV Incorporated will complete the design of Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority’s (MARTA) Clayton County Operations & Maintenance (O&M) Facility that will support MARTA’s service expansion, supplement existing maintenance facilities and improve MARTA’s existing bus network in Clayton County.
STV’s work will build off of in-house efforts to advance the project and a contract with the engineering firm was approved by the MARTA Board of Directors Planning & Capital Programs Committee.
The facility will support 31 regional bus routes, while increasing efficiency and reducing operational costs. The final building design will include parking for 250 buses, infrastructure to support bus service such as a fare retrieval system, fueling area and bus wash, along with a wellness center, MARTA police precinct and firing range. The project is estimated to support more than 350 construction jobs, as well as upwards of 700 new permanent jobs.
“We are excited to partner with MARTA to provide the citizens of Clayton County improvements like the O&M Facility as well as access to bus stop shelters to offer a better experience for riders,” said Clayton County Board of Commissioners Chairman Jeffrey E. Turner. “Projects like these are another testament to the commitment to improve transit service for our residents. We look forward to breaking ground on these major projects and exploring other ways to enhance our transit system.”
The Clayton County O&M Facility project has received $33 million in federal support; two Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Buses and Bus Facilities grants, $13 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2022 and a $5 million earmark secured by U.S. Sen. Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA).
“The strong federal support for this project underscores its importance and value to Clayton County and the entire south metro Atlanta area,” said MARTA Interim General Manager and CEO Collie Greenwood. “For MARTA, it means not only will we provide transit service in Clayton, we will live there, too.”
MARTA notes it is committed to expanding service in Clayton County and explains federal support will be instrumental as the authority works to deliver on that commitment.
Clayton Southlake bus rapid transit (BRT) is currently in the Project Development phase of the FTA’s Capital Investment Grant (CIG) Program as a Small Starts Project. This is MARTA’s first application to the federal CIG Program since the Red Line was extended to North Springs. The estimated $338 million project will provide high-capacity transit connecting the College Park Station to several key destinations and spur transit-oriented development (TOD) along the BRT corridor, an effort that received a $1 million boost this year with an FTA TOD planning grant.
MARTA continues to deliver on its commitment to improve bus service and amenities in Clayton, constructing shelters at high ridership stops and placing Breeze machines at the Justice Center Transit Hub in Jonesboro. Enhancements include better lighting and seating, and real-time service information. MARTA is on track to complete the planned 175 bus stop and shelter upgrades before 2024, and recently, implemented two new bus routes, the 197 and 198, exceeding the original agreement for more bus service in Clayton.
MARTA’s app-based on-demand transit program is being piloted at the Gillem Logistics Center in Clayton County. MARTA Reach is a ridesharing service similar to Uber or Lyft and connects customers in areas underserved by transit to the greater MARTA system. And MARTA’s SR 54 High-Capacity Transit Initiative is exploring potential alternatives for high-capacity, fixed-guideway transit in a study corridor extending from East Point to Lovejoy.
