Blue Line | |||
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Overview | |||
Status | Operational | ||
Locale | Atlanta, Georgia | ||
Termini |
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Stations | 15 (5 West, Five Points, 9 East) | ||
Service | |||
Type | Rapid transit | ||
System | MARTA rail | ||
Operator(s) | MARTA | ||
Rolling stock | See MARTA rail#Rolling stock | ||
History | |||
Opened | 1979 | ||
Technical | |||
Character | at grade, elevated, underground | ||
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge | ||
Electrification | Third rail, 750 V DC | ||
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The Blue Line is a rapid transit line in the MARTA rail system. It operates between Hamilton E. Holmes and Indian Creek stations, running through Atlanta, Decatur and portions of unincorporated DeKalb County.
What is now called the Blue Line contains some of the first sections of the MARTA rail to open. On February 19, 1975, construction on what was then known as the East Line began. [1] On June 30, 1979, service on the East Line began operating between Avondale and Georgia State. [2] [1] On December 22 the same year, the West Line was opened, between Five Points station and what was then known as Hightower station (now Hamilton E. Holmes station). [1] The combined Hightower-Avondale route became known as the East-West Line. [3]
On December 29, 1992, [1] a branch (then known as the Proctor Creek Line [3] ) of the East-West Line to Bankhead station opened. [4] The following year, on June 26, 1993, Kensington and Indian Creek stations on the East Line opened. [1] This was the first time MARTA rail extended beyond Interstate 285. [4]
In 2009, MARTA introduced a color-coded system of naming for its rail lines. [5] As a result, the former East-West Line became the Blue Line. [6]
listed from west to east
Station | Code | Opened | Rail Line Transfer |
---|---|---|---|
Hamilton E. Holmes | W5 | December 22, 1979 [1] | |
West Lake | W4 | ||
Ashby | W3 | ||
Vine City | W2 | ||
GWCC/CNN Center | W1 | ||
Five Points [note 1] | |||
Georgia State | E1 | June 30, 1979 [1] | |
King Memorial | E2 | ||
Inman Park/Reynoldstown | E3 | [note 2] | |
Edgewood/Candler Park | E4 | [note 2] | |
East Lake | E5 | ||
Decatur | E6 | ||
Avondale | E7 | [note 3] | |
Kensington | E8 | June 26, 1993 [1] | |
Indian Creek | E9 |
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority is the principal public transport operator in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Formed in 1971 as strictly a bus system, MARTA operates a network of bus routes linked to a rapid transit system consisting of 48 miles (77 km) of rail track with 38 subway stations. MARTA's rapid transit system is the eighth-largest rapid transit system in the United States by ridership.
Decatur station is a transit station in Decatur, Georgia, on the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. This station opened on June 30, 1979. In 2005, a major renovation of the Church Street entrance to the station was begun that was completed in 2006. The redesign was intended to allow the station to fit in better with the stores and restaurants in the Decatur square. It has 2 tracks and side platforms that serve each track. It is one of the only stations on the Blue Line that is completely underground.
Avondale is a train station in Decatur, Georgia. It is on the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. The station is at-grade and has two island platforms, one for each direction. The center two tracks are not normally used for through service. Because of these middle tracks, it is not uncommon for trains to be bound for Avondale, having passengers change trains at Avondale. A limited number of Green Line trains originate and terminate at Avondale rather than at their normal terminus at Edgewood / Candler Park, though these trains bypass East Lake and Decatur.
Inman Park / Reynoldstown is a train station in Atlanta, Georgia, serving the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It also serves the Green Line on weekdays, and has two side platforms and two tracks. This station opened June 30, 1979.
Edgewood / Candler Park is a train station in Atlanta, Georgia, on the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. Currently, the station also serves as the terminus of the Green Line on weekdays. On weekends, Green Line service instead terminates two stops to the west at King Memorial. The station opened on June 30, 1979.
East Lake is a transit station in Atlanta and Decatur, Georgia, serving the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It has a track in each direction serving an island platform. When the station entered service on June 30, 1979, the opening ceremony took place in the south parking lot.
Buckhead is a train station in Atlanta, Georgia, serving the Red Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. This station is the first station only served by the Red Line. It is located in the Buckhead neighborhood in the median of State Route 400, a limited access highway, at Peachtree Road/State Route 141. The station is in easy walking distance of many offices, hotels and shopping centers, including Lenox Square, although the Lenox MARTA station provides easier access to the mall. The buc, a zero-fare bus service, also provides transportation to the surrounding area. The Buckhead Station also features Zipcars.
GWCC/CNN Center station is a rail station in Atlanta, Georgia, on the Blue and Green lines of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. Located on the western edge of Downtown Atlanta, the station officially opened on December 22, 1979. It was originally called Omni station due to its proximity to the Omni Coliseum, which was demolished to build Philips Arena. The station's name expanded in 1992 as Omni/Dome/World Congress Center with that year's opening of the Georgia Dome as well as the Georgia World Congress Center. By the year 2000, the station name had changed to Dome/GWCC/Philips Arena/CNN Center. In June 2019, MARTA held a town hall to gather community input on a new name for the station after the demolition of the Georgia Dome and the renaming of Philips Arena to State Farm Arena. The station was one of five MARTA rail stations that were under consideration for new names in 2019. The name of the station was changed to GWCC/CNN Center.
Vine City is an at-grade train station in Atlanta, Georgia, serving the Blue and Green lines of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It is one of only two stations served by the Green and Blue lines at all times.
Ashby is a train station in Atlanta, Georgia, serving the Blue and Green lines of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It incorporates the use of split platforms, where the westbound platform is on the upper level and the eastbound platform is on the lower level. This is to facilitate the Green Line's split toward Bankhead, immediately west of this station.
College Park is a train station in College Park, Georgia, United States, serving the Red and Gold lines of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It opened on June 18, 1988. This station mainly serves College Park and surrounding areas, including Morrow, Riverdale, Clayton County, and South Fulton.
Kensington is an at-grade train station in unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, serving the Blue Line of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. It has one island platform with 1 track on each side. This station opened on June 26, 1993.
Bankhead is a train station in Atlanta, Georgia, the western terminus of the Green Line in the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. Bankhead station is located in the Grove Park Neighborhood due to a recent neighborhood expansion. This station primarily serves the neighborhoods of Grove Park, Bankhead, West Lake, Howell Station, and other Westside residents. Bankhead Station provides connecting bus service to Donald Lee Hollowell Highway, Maddox Park, and the future Westside Park at Bellwood Quarry; which will be the largest park in the city of Atlanta
Hamilton E. Holmes, also known as H.E. Holmes, is a metro station in Atlanta, Georgia, the western terminus for the Blue Line in the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system. This is one of the busiest stations in the MARTA system, handling an average of 22,000 boardings per weekday. When the station opened in 1979 it was originally named Hightower station after Hightower Road, but both the road and the station were later renamed to honor civil rights movement hero Hamilton E. Holmes.
The MARTA rail network, a component of the MARTA transit system in Metro Atlanta, has four service lines: the Red, Gold, Blue, and Green lines. The Red and Gold lines mainly run along the North-Northeast corridor, and the Blue and Green Lines run along the West-East corridor. The two corridors connect at the Five Points station, which is the only station where transfers are possible between all four lines. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 31,110,300, or about 90,500 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority was created as the first public mass transit agency in metropolitan Atlanta. Its formation in 1965 was a result of the campaigning efforts of governmental planning agencies and Atlanta businessmen. The system broke ground on its rail system in 1975.
The Gold Line is a rapid transit line in the MARTA rail system. It operates between Doraville and Airport stations, running through Doraville, Chamblee, Brookhaven, Atlanta, East Point and College Park.
The Green Line is a rapid transit line in the MARTA rail system. It operates between Bankhead and Edgewood / Candler Park stations, running exclusively inside the Atlanta city limits.
The Atlanta Streetcar is a streetcar line in Atlanta, Georgia. Testing on the line began in summer 2014 with passenger service beginning as scheduled on December 30, 2014. In 2023, the line had 184,500 rides, or about 900 per weekday in the second quarter of 2024.
Atlanta's transportation system is a complex multimodal system serving the city of Atlanta, Georgia, widely recognized as a key regional and global hub for passenger and freight transportation. The system facilitates inter- and intra-city travel, and includes the world's busiest airport, several major freight rail classification yards, a comprehensive network of freeways, heavy rail, light rail, local buses, and multi-use trails.