Southlake Bus Rapid Transit

Introduction

The Southlake Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project has been designed to improve transit service within Clayton County and to provide a high-capacity transit connection to the Atlanta metro area. The BRT system will operate primarily within the western, central section of Clayton County and include service to College Park, Riverdale, and Morrow, Georgia.

The proposed BRT route will extend from the College Park MARTA Station to Southlake Mall, connecting several key Clayton County destinations, including the Shops of Riverdale and the Southern Regional Medical Center, to MARTA’s heavy rail transit system. The majority of the guideway for the proposed project will be dedicated to bus traffic only. The estimated cost for construction is $338.1 million.

Purpose and Need

The Southlake BRT system is being designed to:

Provide greater access to jobs;
Provide additional reliable and frequent transit services that connect destinations within Clayton County and the Atlanta metro region;
Address the growing local demand for transit services in Clayton County; and
Support land use and economic development plans.

The purpose supports the following transit needs, identified through the planning and public involvement process:

Connect several multi-family residential areas resulting in a high system ridership of over 3,400 daily riders (Bus Route 196 is ranked 6th in the entire MARTA system by daily weekday ridership);
Make a vital connection to several multi-family communities in the study area;
Utilize existing primary routes that serve northwest Clayton County and the City of Riverdale;
Serve the highest percentage of commute trips through Clayton County from adjacent counties to regional employment centers; and
Serve local nodes such as Riverdale, College Park, Morrow, the Southern Regional Medical Center, the College Park MARTA Station, and Southlake Mall.