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Images: MARTA’s $150M transit hub in Clayton County officially a go Josh Green Thu, 11/07/2024 - 15:16 Following the rejection of tax-funded, billion-dollar transportation initiatives in both Cobb and Gwinnett counties, it’s been a tough week for metro Atlanta transit enthusiasts. But better news appears to be on the horizon, south of the city in Clayton County.

MARTA officials and Clayton County government leaders have scheduled a groundbreaking Nov. 15 for a major transit hub near the Atlanta airport designed to support more than two dozen regional bus routes while creating hundreds of jobs.

MARTA has recognized the need to build such a multifaceted project—officially called the Clayton County Operations & Maintenance Facility—since Clayton residents voted to join the MARTA system back in 2014. Project leaders are calling the scheduled groundbreaking a milestone in efforts to beef up transit services across the south metro.

Overview of the 31-acre Clayton County Operations & Multipurpose Facility in Forest Park. Courtesy of MARTA

The Forest Park site in question today. Connect Clayton

The Clayton O&M Facility is expected to transform industrial acreage to reduce operational costs and increase efficiency for 31 regional bus routes. That means parking will be provided for 290 buses, alongside support infrastructure such as a fuel area, bus wash, and fare retrieval system.

Other components will be a wellness center for employees, a MARTA police precinct, and a firing range.

According to MARTA, the project will generate 700 construction jobs and 400 permanent ones. It’s designed to support Clayton’s growing fleet of both electric and diesel buses. (On a related note, MARTA’s 16-stop Rapid Southlake bus-rapid-transit route remains in planning phases. That’s expected to shave down commute times between Southlake Mall and the airport in one of metro Atlanta’s busiest corridors for transit use.)

The Clayton O&M Facility will claim a 31-acre site at 5163 Old Dixie Highway in Forest Park that was previously a K-Mart distribution center, according to a project overview. MARTA had previously considered more than two dozen sites based on traffic conditions, development costs, current zoning, and other factors.

Courtesy of MARTA

Example of a planned BRT stop on MARTA’s future Southlake route.Courtesy of MARTA

The facility’s estimated cost is $150 million—up from $116 million in 2022, when the project was tentatively scheduled to break ground in January this year.

The Clayton O&M Facility has received $33 million in federal support, according to MARTA. That includes two Federal Transit Administration Buses and Bus Facilities grants—$13 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2022—in addition to a $5 million earmark secured by Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock.

“The robust federal support for this project highlights its critical importance to Clayton County and the entire south metro Atlanta area,” Collie Greenwood, MARTA general manager and CEO, said in a groundbreaking announcement today. “This facility will enable us to continue providing reliable transit service in Clayton while creating meaningful job opportunities and investing in the community.”

According to Connect Clayton, the new facility will be fully operational by the winter of 2026, following two years of construction.

MARTA officials say upgrades to 175 bus stops and shelters in Clayton County were also completed earlier this year.

Find more context and imagery for the southside transit initiatives in the gallery above.

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Images: MARTA's $150M transit hub in Clayton County officially a go

Images: MARTA's $150M transit hub in Clayton County officially a go