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Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) Interim General Manager and CEO Jonathan Hunt discussed his vision and near-term goals during a press conference at MARTA headquarters.

Hunt, previously MARTA’s Chief Legal Counsel, was appointed interim GM/CEO by the MARTA Board of Directors at the August board meeting after the retirement of Collie Greenwood.

During the press conference, Hunt shared his vision for restoring operational safety and reliability, advancing key projects, and preparing for next summer’s World Cup.

Hunt said Atlanta has a good transit system, however MARTA staff patrons and the region isn’t satisfied with “good.”

“This is why we’re going to go from good to great, which will require some short-term discomfort for long-term gain,” Hunt said. “Our vision is to deliver safe, clean, and reliable transit through routine excellence every day.”

The vision, he says, will build consistency and delivery, which will result in building and enhancing the public trust in MARTA. An example of this, he said, is the excellent delivery of service they provided during the Labor Day weekend downtown.

“Atlanta was packed with Dragon Con, College Football goers, as well as folks at the Pride events. We had over 420,000 customers that passed through our system in three-and-a-half days,” he said. “We did so without one violent crime or incident of any kind.”

Additionally, Hunt said his near-term goals for the authority includes improving operational efficiency, improving safety and security of the transit system, working to advance and deliver key projects, and ensuring MARTA is World Cup ready for next year.

Some of the first concrete steps that MARTA will be taking around each one of these goals, he said, is MARTA working to improve operational reliability.

“We recently hired an operational consultant who is embedded with MARTA to go through our systems and look at areas for improvement and efficiency, which will help us enact the same,” he said. “We will continue to recruit, hire, and train some of the best bus and rail operators in the region, as well as mechanics and technicians, officers, and field protective specialists.”

MARTA is also looking for innovative ways to reduce operator absenteeism and reduce several bus cutouts and terminations. Hunt also addressed concerns of MARTA’s safety, which he said, “MARTA is one of the safest transit agencies in the country.”

“MARTA Police Department (MPD) has increased patrols and visibility, and hopefully you’ve seen more officers and field protective specialists on our system,” he said. “We’re going to add 10 more field protective specialists and 30 more sworn officers.”

He also says MPD will be fully staffed at approximately 250 officers by the end of Q4 of this year. Violent crime has also been reduced by half in the last five years and down by 16% year over year, from last year to date.

“We know data doesn’t make people feel safe, and if the perception is that the system is unsafe, then we have work to do,” he said.

Another goal Hunt says is to advance and deliver key projects, such as a next-generation bus network redesign, which will deliver 15-minute headways to more than 245% of people who have access to the system.

“We’re going to introduce 12 on-demand zones within a program we’re calling MARTA to reach small zones to allow folks to take more of a micro transit experience,” he said.

Also, they will be implementing their new Automatic Fare Collection System 2.0, which is going to be an easier, more flexible new evolution of Breeze. The fare gate installation will also begin mid-September in Lindbergh.

Additionally, the transition from their old Breeze System to a new, better system will happen second quarter around April 2026 at five-point station, according to Hunt. The rehabilitation project work, which includes tiling, lighting, beautification, and more has also been ongoing and should be completed by spring of 2026 as well.

Also, the first bus rapid transit line in the region will be ready and online in Spring 2026. MARTA is also working on an O & M facility in Clayton County, coming soon. For the Garnet station, they will also be doing a rehabilitation project that will cause a six-week skip stop beginning in the next few days.

“This work is needed because we’ve got to improve the tile work at that station, some of which are over 40 years old,” he said. “We want to be World Cup ready.”

Speaking of the FIFA World Cup 2026, this is the fourth goal for MARTA, preparation.

“We’re going to be adding additional shuttle trains in our system to reduce headways at or below the levels we saw on Labor Day, which were at a five-minute interval,” he said.

They also will be introducing more load and go teams to help mitigate overcrowding on the platforms. MARTA will enhance their escalator work to ensure there will be no issues, and everyone has the same experience over the six-week period.

Other points MARTA are introducing include:

·      Enhanced crowd control measures

·      Metering to allow folks to have safe and enjoyable passage between stations, trains, buses, and venues

·      MPD will introduce enhanced safety measures including the addition to the Mobile command unit, drone surveillance units, canine units, and sort units

Hunt also said he’s excited about the CIM group developing Centennial Yards and reshaping the Gulch with a multi-billion-dollar project.

Additionally, Hunt addressed MARTA’s financial health.

“Many of our peer agencies are facing devastating financial outlooks, deep cuts to service personnel, and capital projects to make ends meet,” he said. “I’m happy to report MARTA’s financial house is in order and we’re going to remain budget conscious.”

Furthermore, Hunt says he is not interested in a permanent position as general manager.

“I’m passionate about MARTA and have been here over 12 years, and I want to see MARTA win. When MARTA wins, Atlanta wins. I really enjoy my job, and I will still be here, but not as your permanent general manager or CEO,” he said.

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