MARTA: light-rail is best option for future Lindbergh-to-Avondale line
Ten stops would be served along 8.8-mile route
MARTA planners are recommending that light-rail transit run along the proposed Clifton Corridor route that would connect Lindbergh Center, Emory University, and MARTA’s Avondale stop.
Transit agency officials, who’ve held community meetings and solicited comments to study the potential routes and modes, say the 8.8-mile line would serve 10 stops, including Cheshire Bridge, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Suburban Plaza, and DeKalb Medical Center. Three additional stations, including Piedmont (which would allow transfers to the Atlanta Beltline), DeKalb Industrial Way, and North Arcadia (which is referred to as the old DeVry campus), could also be built. Kicker sentence, courtesy of the Medlock Neighborhood Association, which first posted the news: “Further, the alternative would provide an alternative means for high-capacity evacuation from the CDC in the event of an emergency situation.” (I don’t want to hear any “Walking Dead” jokes, people.)
As Decatur Metro notes, the chances of the line being built in the next three generations largely hinge on whether voters approve this July’s regional transportation tax referendum.
MARTA staffers will present the recommendation to the transit agency’s planning and external relations committee on March 26 at 10 a.m. Another presentation will be delivered to MARTA’s board on April 9 at 1:30 p.m. The public will have a chance to comment on the plan prior to the presentation at the April 9 meeting. Both presentations will take place at MARTA’s headquarters in Lindbergh. The plan then goes before the Atlanta Regional Commission.