Box 6, Folder 10, Document 58

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Box 6, Folder 10, Document 58

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ae }/}RAPID TRANSIT





bf 2) METROPOLITAN ATLANTA RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY



“A REPORTS TO THE PEOPLE IT SERVES

——7E ee VOL. 3S. NO.

CANADIAN RAPID TRANSIT
PLEASES DEKALB VISITORS

Six prominent DeKalb visitors returned from a recent trip
to Toronto and Montreal to inspect those cities’ rapid transit
operations, and reported that what they saw was “most im-
pressive,” “fantastic,” “first class,’ and ‘“‘magnificent.”. They
concluded that “we should proceed as rapidly as we possibly
can” in developing a rapid transit system for Metropolitan
Atlanta.

Those in the group were Brince H. Manning, Chairman,
DeKalb County Board of Commissioners; William C. Painter,
Mayor Pro-Tem, City of Decatur; William H. Breen, Architect
and member of the Decatur City Commission; Tom McCord,
President of Tom McCord Construction Company and Chair-
man of Decatur Planning Commission; John H. Ingram, Presi-
dent C & S Emory Bank and Chairman of Decatur/DeKalb
Rapid Transit Committee; and Aubrey C. Couch, Executive
Vice President, Decatur/DeKalb Development Association.

The six members of the group discussed their impressions
and evaluations of the two systems at a news conference held
in the DeKalb Commission chamber on February 9.

Manning observed that “we came away from Toronto and
Montreal with different impressions from those we had gotten
from just reading literature. Certainly we ought to get on to



DeKalb group in Montreal Station. Left to right, William FR.
Breen, Tom McCord, John H. Ingram, William C. Painter.

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ah 2's

Rapid Transit train approaching Eglinton Station with high-
rise building and parking decks using “air rights’ over tracks.

the job one way or the other because we need to be able to
move people. We have to have a totally integrated system with
automobiles, buses, and possibly even trackless trolleys, as
well as rail transit.

“I think the thing we here in this area have overlooked so
much in the past is the impact that this will have not only on
land values but also on the development that will come and
the terrific increase in the tax digest which will arise from this
development. We saw plans that could fit into almost any area
that we have in DeKalb County or the City of Decatur or the
whole metropolitan area of Atlanta, of development which has
resulted from rapid transit.”

“Certainly we ought to move forward with the program if
we are going to have it: and if we don’t move forward, we will
all regret it in years to come.”

Breen, an architect, was unequivocal in his enthusiasm for
the speed of the system and for the design of the stations in
Montreal. He stated, “The most summarizing thing you could
say about the whole trip was that I can come back now and say
that ‘rapid transit works — I have seen it.’”

“The system is fantastic,” he said. “A system that allowed
me to get on at one end of the line in Montreal, cover 15 stops

FEB.-MARCH 1968


METROPOLITAN ATLANTA
RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY

808 GLENN BLOG.+120 MARIETTA ST., N.W.
ATLANTA, GA. 30303 * PHONE 524-5711

“DIRECTED BY THE GEORGIA STATE
LEGISLATURE TO DEVELOP A RAPID
TRANSIT SYSTEM FORTHE 5-COUNTY
METROPOLITAN ATLANTA AREA."

Edited by Kinc E.Luiotr

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OFFICERS:

Ricuanp H. Ricu, Chairman
Hennent J. Dickson, Treasurer

Roy A. Buount, Fice Chairman
Epsuno W. Hucues, Seeretary

CITY OF ATLANTA:

Rosent F, Apamsox L. D. Minton
Ricuann H. Ricu Rawson Haventy

CLAYTON COUNTY:
Epcar BLavock
DEKALB COUNTY:

Da, Sanrorn Atwoop
FULTON COUNTY:
Mitcuent C. Bisnor
GWINNETT COUNTY:
K. A. MeMiniios
COBB COUNTY (Observer)
Otis A. Bromay, Jn.
MARTA STAFF:
Henay L. Stuart. General Manager
Eant W. Netson, CAtef Engineer

Kine Enitott, Pirector of Public Information
H. N. Jouxson, Administrative Assistant to General Manager

+

Roy A. Brount

Joun C. Staton









in 13 miles, let everyone get on and off who wished, and have
spent no more than 15 minutes, is really moving people.”

“The thing that I saw as an architect which was most im-
pressive was the definition of this thing ‘corridor impact.’ I’ve
heard this thing discussed, and seen it in papers, graphs, and
charts, but in Montreal I saw it all in flesh and blood and in
architecture. I certainly want to compliment the architects who
handled the situation in Montreal.

“The extensive development around rapid transit stations in
Toronto and Montreal indicated to the group what might be
accomplished in the Metropolitan Atlanta Area, with good
planning before and during rapid transit development.”

McCord stated, “What impressed me was that rapid transit
made the backbone of the future development regarding build-
ing and other developments. In the city of Decatur’s planning,
we have just been through working over our documents again
and we are real concerned that property values will not only
stay where they are, but will continue to go up. As you know,
we have had urban renewal and this has been a great boon.
We now have several high-rise buildings here including the
new county courthouse building. We would like to think that
we could help the people who own property in Decatur to con-
tinue to have valuable property. If rapid transit would make the
land values continue to go up near the stations, then we would
like to be involved where the stations would be and to help
plan for the future. We are not talking about a one or two-
year plan, we are talking about a fifteen or twenty-year plan.”

Painter agreed with McCord’s observation about develop-
ment in Toronto and related that to the future of Decatur.
“The city of Decatur will be in a very critical spot in this whole
metropolitan area transit. We feel that rapid transit in the city
of Decatur will be an exciting and meaningful development
for the entire citizenry. It will not only mean a mode for mov-
ing back and forth in the downtown area of Atlanta, but will
also be the backbone for the development that you have just
heard about. The residential development will be more signifi-
cant to Decatur because we have always been an area where
people like to live. High-rise developments will be available.
We saw there in Montreal and Toronto many high-rise apart-
ments, and good rentals can be obtained in these because of

the proximity to rapid transit. We feel that what we saw there
can be related to Decatur in a very, very meaningful way, and
we feel that our citizens will support it.”

Ingram was particularly impressed with the speed with
which the Montreal system was developed and the speed with
which the system moves large numbers of people. “Montreal
had talked about rapid transit for some fifty years but when
the decision was finally made to act, they accomplished what
they now have in a short period of time of about five years,

“We were impressed with the speed with which they moved
350,000 people each day in the city of Montreal and moved
them in quiet and in comfort and with efficiency.

“Each of these cars will carry about 160 people and they
will run about 10 cars to a train, so about 1,500 people can
ride on one train. The trains are spaced something like two or
three minutes apart, so you can visualize how fast you can
move people into Atlanta, or out to Decatur, or out into De-
Kalb County.

“We found out that the public attitude about rapid transit
had changed quite a bit. People in that area feel that it is no
longer to their advantage to drive automobiles to work. They
know now that they can ride the rapid transit system, have no
parking problem, and arrive at work much more quickly. It is
certainly easier than the way they were able to do this before.”

“The cost of the system was certainly large; one car for
example, will cost an average of about $123,000 and this was
five or six years ago. We are talking in the Atlanta area about
some 52 miles of track. The last figure I recall was in excess
of some four hundred million dollars, and this keeps going up
every year. We feel in the interest of Atlanta and Decatur and
this great area we all live in, that we have got to translate this
talk and these discussions into action as soon as possible.”

Couch, too, concluded that after visiting the Montreal sys-
tem, “We cannot afford not to build a system in Atlanta, and
speed is of the essence. We rode the system in Montreal as the
average person would ride it. We stayed in the Hotel Cham-
plain in Montreal, rode one floor down on the elevator and
were in the rapid transit system at that point. We paid a
quarter, and, as far as we know, you could ride all day long
for the price.”

“The opportunity is so great and is so staggering that I
don’t think anybody can really understand what an opportun-



ee I 6“ Se



ity this area has. I have seen METRO in Paris and I have seen
the subway in New York and I must confess, the subway in
New York did not impress me. But what I saw in Montreal,
and to a larger degree in Toronto, was so different that I came
away with the same feeling that Mr. Breen mentioned — rapid
transit works.”

“They have done magnificently,” Couch emphasized, ‘and
if they can do it in Montreal and Toronto, we can do it here
in Atlanta and we must with the greatest speed possible.”

Manning agreed with McCord that, “the longer we wait, the
more it is going to cost. This entire project will have to be
submitted to the people and we should move forward with the
program.” Manning concluded, “Certainly we should move
forward with the program if we are going to have it, and, if
not, we are going to regret it in years to come.”

The inspection tour February 1-3 was arranged and spon-
sored by the Decatur/DeKalb Development Association; trans-
portation was by private plane owned and piloted by Tom
McCord.

Breen said, “There is one thing I would like to say. This
general conversation has related to Metropolitan Atlanta, De-
catur and DeKalb County and the number of stations and ex-
tensions of the routes. If there are any interested persons in
counties which are not in favor of rapid transit, I would like
to recommend to these persons and to persons in other parts
of the State that they give their attention to two things:

“First, I recommend to any one that before they really be-
come set against rapid transit that they make an effort to take
a trip to Toronto and Montreal. After our trip, we are en-
thusiastic about rapid transit and see that there is a real need
for it,

“Second, rapid transit adds a facility or capability to a city
which in our case would generate new economy throughout
the whole State. This is something that would lift Atlanta up
out of a questionable area of whether it is indeed a great city
or not quite great. I think rapid transit would help make the
whole Metropolitan Atlanta area and all of its environment
including DeKalb County and DeKalb municipalities part of
a great area of high density habitation. This could not help
but affect economy of our State. If I were in Valdosta, Thomas-
ton, or some other part of Georgia, I would be in favor of
rapid transit.”



“We saw it, we rode it, we like it!” William Painter (1) with Ingram afd Breen; and, across the aisle, McCord with DeKalb Commission Chair-
man Brince H. Manning (r), as they rode the Montreal rapid transit trains,





RAPID TRANSIT EXHIBIT
WINS FIRST PLACE AWARD

An exhibit on rapid transit won a blue ribbon for four
Chamblee High School students at the Science Fair in DeKalb
County in February. The exhibit, titled “Rapid Transit for
Atlanta,” used plaster of paris, wood, plastic, toys, parts of a
train set and other materials to show the basic layout of the
rapid transit system now being developed. The “mushroom-
shaped” objects in the picture above are signs depicting station
locations and the time/distance from Transit Center. The
“Blue Ribbon” in the upper left corner of the display indicates
a First Place award.

The display was developed and built by Carol Pitts, Dianne
Coffee, Judy David and Barbara Wilson, all ninth-grade stu-
dents at Chamblee High School. Ken Moore, World Geography



DeKalb County School Superintendent Jim Cherry listens in-
tently as Chamblee student Carol Pitts explains the display she
and three other students built, depicting rapid transit plans for
Metropolitan Atlanta.

teacher at Chamblee, was the supervising teacher for the project.

The project took approximately 60 “girl-hours” to complete,
and won a “First Place — Blue Ribbon” in the DeKalb com-
petition. A total of more than 600 projects was entered in the
Science Fair. DeKalb School officials say the fair provides “an
opportunity for students to develop research skills and engage
in individual and in-depth studies as they learn to distinguish
between fact and opinion while exploring a more exciting ap-
proach to learning.”
MART Answers

The following questions were asked by newsmen and were
answered by members of the DeKalb group which recently
toured rapid transit systems in Toronto and Montreal.

QUESTION — Did you get any feeling from the people
there as to whether they were glad to have rapid transit and
depended on it or whether they wished it had never been built?

BRINCE MANNING — I personally did not talk to any
public officials or to anyone connected with rapid transit. We
went to get the feelings of the average person in these two
great cities and the opinions of business people who have their
places of business around rapid transit and also the attitudes
of those who live around rapid transit. I did not get the im-
pression in either city that the public was against it. Two or
three people did say that there was opposition to it in the be-
ginning but they felt as a result of the completed system, that
most of the people are in favor of it.

QUESTION — How well do you feel the new systems were
integrated with existing neighborhoods as well as with the new
development that took place after the stations were built?

WILLIAM BREEN — In the neighborhoods, the stations
were largely underground as far as size and volume were con-
cerned. Portions of the neighborhood stations which actually
occupied ground and space above ground was very small. You
could have had two or three of them around our court square,
for instance, without disrupting any of our present operations.
People walk to the stations. The only exception was where the
automobiles and buses came to the stations; there they have
drive-in stations which allow rapid transit riders to get to their
cars or to buses which feed out into the neighborhoods.

QUESTION — You mentioned the possibility of expanding
the system in DeKalb County with more stations and longer
lines. Do you have any specific idea as to what and where?

MANNING — Well, the initial line in DeKalb County is
to come out along the Georgia Railroad, College Avenue and
DeKalb Avenue through Decatur, on out past Sams Crossing
to Avondale. It is our thinking that because of the traffic pat-
tern set up by the Perimeter Highway that the initial line should
be extended beyond the Perimeter Highway. The reason for
this is the limited crossings of the perimeter, not only for
private automobiles but also for bus transportation.

QUESTION — You also want more stations along the line
than are now in the planning?

MANNING — Y¥es, sir: I believe in Toronto the stations
are spaced about a mile and a quarter apart. You can see the

development at each station, and I think if we have more sta-

tions, there will be a greater impact on every area in DeKalb
County as well as in other counties in the Metropolitan area.
I would like to say this — there has been a lot of talk about
rapid transit as something which is just for moving people
downtown. The two cities we saw defaults this theory. There
is much movement out to the areas, shopping centers, and
office buildings that have been developed as a result of rapid
transit. I would say that people are going out to these more
than they are going downtown. I think this would be true in
the Atlanta Metropolitan Area and this suits me fine. The
more people we can move out here to shop, to live, to invest
their money in real estate development, the better off we will

be.



MART ActTIon

At its regular meeting January 15, 1968, the MARTA board
of directors re-elected Richard H. Rich as Chairman and Roy
Blount as Vice Chairman. The Board was advised that the
following directors had been re-appointed to new terms: from
Atlanta, L. D, Milton to a term expiring December 31, 1971;
from DeKalb County, Dr. Sanford Atwood to a term expir-
ing December 31, 1971; from DeKalb County, Roy Blount to
a term expiring December 31, 1969; and from Gwinnett
County, K. A. MeMillon to a term expiring December 31,
1971.

The Board agreed to participate in an accelerated program
of the Atlanta Area Transportation Study.

At its meeting in February, the Board of Directors au-
thorized the General Manager to file an application with the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for
$166,666.00, to be matched by $83,334.00 of local funds for
continuation of the work program in 1968. This program
includes work elements on Preliminary Ownership Study
($49,000); Accounting and Financial Control System ($25,-
000); Architectural Studies ($32,000); Transit Center Tech-
nical Studies ($99,000); Socio-Economic Benefit Analysis
($30,000); and Impact of Proposed System of Atlanta
Transit System ($15,000).

The Board also agreed on MARTA's share of the cost of
the accelerated Atlanta Area Transportation Study: MARTA
and the State Highway Department will each contribute
$100,000 toward this work.

The next meeting will be April 2, 3:30 P.M.. Room 619,
The Glenn Building, 120 Marietta Street. N.W., Auanta,







RAPID TRANSIT

PROGRESS

METROPOLITAN ATLANTA RAPID TRANSIT AUTHORITY



BULK RATE
U.S. Postage
PAID

Atlanta, Ga.
Permit No. 705







808 GLENN BLDG. + 120MARIETTA ST,, ' ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303

PHONE 524-5711 (AREA CODE 404)

Now

FEBRUARY-MARCH 1968-VOL, 3, NO. 2



Mr. Dan E. Sweat, Jr., Director of

Governmental Liaison, City of Atlanta
City Hall

Atlanta, Ga. 30303

oar.
ofa | 1

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