Not so fast...

JawJa

Driving Instructor
This is a NE side of town issue... probably does not affect most of the Hiway folks...
There has been a move on... to extend Marta out into Gwinnett Cty.
Last time they tried that... it was solidly defeated!
Now they are trying it again.

Heard on the radio this morning... the move is not doing so good... small (and grownign) majority are against it...
And not surprisingly... younger people are for it, older folks are against it.

Here is the problem...
It is gonna be a $0.01 (one cent) SPLOST tax...
Problem is... for the first 5-6 years... something like 1/3 of the $$$ goes to expand Marta into Gwinnett Cty...
The other 2/3 of the $$$ goes to bail out Marta in other areas.
The talking point is... folks in Gwinnett Cty use Marta (get on at the Doraville and Chamblee stations)... so we should be paying for it.
The truth in the fine print is: MARTA will have FULL jurisdiction over all mass transit in Gwinnett Cty... where busses run, where bus terminal and Xfer stations are built, where MARTA train stations are built... etc. One person suggested MARTA might take our new, clean, shiny busses for downtown use, and send their old ragged busses out here... they could legally do that.
I know of plans to build a buss Xfer station on the edge of a neighborhood that has expensive homes (in Peachtree Corners)... the locals are angrier than wet hens!
IMO the LAST thing we need in Gwinnett Cty... is the city of Atlanta telling us what we can do and deciding how our RE is developed (where MARTA train and bus Xfer stations go... will have a LOT to do with property development trends and property values).
We already know City of Atlanta are corrupt... we do NOT need them running our county!

I see TPTB downtown attempting to rip off Gwinnett Cty...
No thank you!
 
This is a NE side of town issue... probably does not affect most of the Hiway folks...
There has been a move on... to extend Marta out into Gwinnett Cty.
Last time they tried that... it was solidly defeated!
Now they are trying it again.

Heard on the radio this morning... the move is not doing so good... small (and grownign) majority are against it...
And not surprisingly... younger people are for it, older folks are against it.

Here is the problem...
It is gonna be a $0.01 (one cent) SPLOST tax...
Problem is... for the first 5-6 years... something like 1/3 of the $$$ goes to expand Marta into Gwinnett Cty...
The other 2/3 of the $$$ goes to bail out Marta in other areas.
The talking point is... folks in Gwinnett Cty use Marta (get on at the Doraville and Chamblee stations)... so we should be paying for it.
The truth in the fine print is: MARTA will have FULL jurisdiction over all mass transit in Gwinnett Cty... where busses run, where bus terminal and Xfer stations are built, where MARTA train stations are built... etc. One person suggested MARTA might take our new, clean, shiny busses for downtown use, and send their old ragged busses out here... they could legally do that.
I know of plans to build a buss Xfer station on the edge of a neighborhood that has expensive homes (in Peachtree Corners)... the locals are angrier than wet hens!
IMO the LAST thing we need in Gwinnett Cty... is the city of Atlanta telling us what we can do and deciding how our RE is developed (where MARTA train and bus Xfer stations go... will have a LOT to do with property development trends and property values).
We already know City of Atlanta are corrupt... we do NOT need them running our county!

I see TPTB downtown attempting to rip off Gwinnett Cty...
No thank you!

When they tried that years ago in Cobb, someone figured out that the only thing they would get is the rail line,,, no buses!!! At the same time they would get total control as the Transit Authority. Add to that the fact that everyone would be taxed for it while few would be able to take advantage of it. People like you can not use it on a daily basis, and may never use it on special occasions, but you would still pay for it in SPLOST,,, and the more you buy, the more you pay, (read, tax on the rich!).
If they are serious about this, someone needs to due diligence on whether or not you will get bus routes, and if so, will they cover the entire county.
Rapid rail is fine, but Gwinnett should only pay for that portion the Federal grant does not pay for,,, and MARTA should not have control of the Transit Authority for Gwinnett, only the rail line.

Just a little more ammo for your fight!!!!
 
THX... IMO it will probably fail this time...
However unless GA (state) starts trending back towards red (rather than continue the purple trend)...
I suspect 'they' will try it again.

I grew up in Houston Tx... a city that tried and tried to get a rail system in repeatedly.
The folks in Houston are just to independent and ornery to allow that (gotta love Texans... grin).
What they did... was build HOV lanes (not use a center lane, rather a special lane, like the 'tolli-coaster' beside I-75 in Cobb Cty...
Then they put in park and ride lots... and used surplus 'over the road' (greyhound style) buses to transport folks to and from work and events.
It has worked very well down in Houston... and it is a LOT cheaper to build and run than light rail.
One of the major issues with rail... is the stations cost $30-40M... while buses can go wherever one wants to, any time.
As I understand it... most of the park and ride bus system is privately owned and makes a profit... using the publicly provided HOV lanes.
Houston did set up HOV lanes on the major downtown streets... it seems to work.

IMO we are gonna have to do something...
However IMO expanding light rail is NOT the answer.

I prefer each country to control their own bus system...

And IMO we need that outer loop... even though I realize the wrong people own the land that needs to be bought to build it... ( :) )
 
I hope no one takes this the wrong way, because it's not about race at all. It is about culture and "types" of people. By types of people, I'm simply referring to people who can be irresponsible, possibly prone to crime, might not keep their place up well, sometimes doesn't behave, etc.

But it's been my experience that when mass transit moves into an area, a worse class of people tend to come with it. And that can drag an area down.

Apartment buildings tend to do the same.

I hope that does sound snooty, it's not about how much money people make or anything like that. I've never been one who judges someone by their income level (and God knows I've been broke a few times myself). Just people who can't seem to behave and tend to bring trouble with them.
 
Yes GD... I understand what you are saying... and no, I do not take it negatively... it is how things work sometimes.
Sadly... the truth is not always PC... IMO we need to get over thinking truth is always gonna feel good.

This is the reason I am not warm on the idea of the City of Atlanta having control of mass transit in Gwinnett Cty...
In essence... they will control which areas are developed which way...
Rather than the residents of Gwinnett Cty controlling the development of the country.

The whole thing, IMO, is just another power grab... nicely wrapped up in progressive high minded talk.

When, oh when... are we gonna learn:
Polecats are NEVER our friends...
They are NEVER to be trusted...
And the best thing is to limit their power as much as can possibly be done...
And society still function.
 
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