Aaron Fowler, Senior Transit Planner at the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), presented to a mixture of nearly 30 YPT members and friends on May 4th, 2015. The history of regional transit governance in the Atlanta region goes all the way back to when there were nearly 20 operating streetcar companies in the late 1800’s. In recent years, four acronym-laden committees were formed at various agencies to discuss regional transit. Most recently, the Regional Transit Committee (RTC) was formed in 2010 as a committee of ARC and has made good progress so far. A regional trip planner has been created (http://atltransit.org/index.html), a regional bus stop numbering and standard signage system is under development. Regional fare policy was then discussed, and why traditional operators still have their own payment systems rather than converting fully to the regional “Breeze” card system. A more equitable payment system is being investigated upon completion of the Breeze card clearinghouse audit, to allow small providers such as the new Atlanta Streetcar, to use the regional far pass. Aaron then compared the Atlanta region to D.C., Los Angeles, and Seattle to show how their regional transit efforts relate. A question and answer session was provided and most questions focused on what are the next steps to creating a comprehensive and efficient regional public transportation system. If you are interested in Aaron’s presentation, please reach out to him at afowler@atlantaregional.com!
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