MARTA Officially Cuts The Braves Shuttle

by gondeee on Jun 28, 2010 4:36 PM EDT

According to the AJC, MARTA has officially cut the Braves shuttle, starting next year. While this will affect some attendance at games, it likely won't affect attendance to the point where the Braves organization will do anything about it. For a detailed overview of the limited alternative options, go here for a story I wrote exactly a month ago to the day.

It's a shame this got cut, for the people who rely on it, but it was likely the right move by MARTA.

While I don't recommend it in the middle of the summer, in the spring and fall the walk from either the Georgia State station or Five Points is just 15 to 20 minutes to the stadium. Perhaps the City of Atlanta and MARTA and the Braves will do a "get in shape with the Braves" campaign next year to promote physical fitness. Heck, they could even block off a lane and have drink stations setup along the way to and from the stadium.

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I ride the MARTA to work downtown, so the Braves Shuttle is critical to my attendance at the 15-20 games I go to each season. I don’t know what I’ll do next season. I have a feeling I’ll make it to less games unfortunately.

I wouldn’t recommend anyone walk by themselves from Turner Field to Five Points or Georgia State without decent daylight or a police escort.

by KoKo the Monkey (T-Bone) on Jun 28, 2010 4:46 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs

BOOO

by Windu on Jun 28, 2010 5:01 PM EDT reply actions

Reason # 324932948324328432432 MARTA sucks

Reason # 1 was when the “geniuses” that built MARTA in the 1970s elected not to run a rail by the freaking ballpark. What major city do you know that does not have some sort of direct public transportation to its professional sporting facilities?

Secondly, I do believe this is going to negatively impact attendance at home games. The reason the MARTA shuttle is so great is because if you live outside the perimeter (as do probably a good 70% of the metro-area residents) it is literally impossible to get down to the clusterfuck known as 75/85 for a 7PM game on a weeknight. Why should Dad in Cobb County take his son to the game when he would have to sit in two hours of traffic to do it? He’d rather just sit on his recliner at home and watch the game in HD.

Screw you, MARTA. Just start charging a $1 for the ride or something. I’m certain people would pay it. Argh, I’m way more aggravated about this than I should be.

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by AuditDawg on Jun 28, 2010 5:05 PM EDT reply actions

Check out Martin's "go here" link

Unfortunately, MARTA can’t charge any extra for the shuttle. But I’m just as frustrated as you.

by KoKo the Monkey (T-Bone) on Jun 28, 2010 10:42 PM EDT up reply actions

Dis some bullshit

by homerun on Jun 28, 2010 5:12 PM EDT reply actions

great

i live on the corner of peachtree st and marietta (right by 5 points marta) without a car, and this was my way of getting to the braves game…

by lingsched on Jun 28, 2010 5:22 PM EDT reply actions

MARTA

A big reason I left Atlanta to move here to Chicago is because I was sick, not of MARTA, but of the attitude of people in Atlanta towards public transportation in general. The idiotic belief that a public transit system has to “make a profit” has made MARTA the failure it is, and the idea that they have to cut the Braves shuttle (which I used quite often to attend games when I lived there) to “save money” is only going to make things worse for those in Atlanta who would prefer not to have the expense of owning a car.

Owning an automobile used to be a symbol of freedom, now it’s a symbol of slavery: slavery to the gas companies, slavery to the insurance companies, slavery to a community redistricting policy that’s hostile to anyone who wants to go anywhere with their own two feet every now and then. Frankly, if Atlantans aren’t going to take public transit seriously, they should just dismantle the whole thing, sell off the trains and rail and buses, and do without it.

I have followed the Braves for over thirty years and I will continue to follow them because they are a class organization with a great history. But as long as the city of Atlanta continues to be stifled by the spoiled suburbanites who dominate the political scene and who sneer at anyone who refuses to participate in their car-centric culture, it will continue to be a second-rate city.

by CupOJoe on Jun 30, 2010 7:21 AM EDT reply actions

By the way

I went to the game last Thursday at The Cell with my buddy Pete (Pictures are up on another post), and we took the Red Line from North/Clybourne, got off at Chinatown, had some lunch, then got back on and got to the game right on time. When it was over, there was a huge crowd leaving and many took the Red Line back, but the CTA was on it, with trains coming only a minute or so apart so everyone got out of there smoothly.

The CTA isn’t perfect but it works, and MARTA could work for Atlanta if the a-holes in the suburbs and in the rest of the state would recognize how important public transit is.

by CupOJoe on Jun 30, 2010 7:29 AM EDT up reply actions