MARTA is asking legislators again for permission to use automated traffic cameras to keep vehicles out of bus-only lanes, which are coming in 2025.
Past efforts to gain approval for the traffic cameras have been unsuccessful, but MARTA officials have tweaked their request and told lawmakers they believe the cameras are critical for the success of the various rapid bus lines planned in the coming years.
“We want it to be a reliable, fast service,” Jennifer Larosa, MARTA’s director of government and community affairs, told members of the legislative oversight committee Thursday.
Bus rapid transit routes are designed to mimic the speed of rail service, with dedicated lanes and fewer stops that allow buses to move passengers more quickly than regular routes that are subject to the same traffic congestion as cars.
But keeping buses moving requires open lanes, and many jurisdictions with BRT have had issues keeping cars out. MARTA officials have said previously they don’t think using law enforcement to ticket is a good use of police resources. They’re proposing mounting cameras to the front of buses that could catch the license plates of any offenders.
Larosa said timing is of the essence: MARTA has several planned rapid bus routes expected to come online in the coming years, beginning first with the Summerhill line along Capitol Avenue in Atlanta. Service on the Summerhill line is slated to start next year.
The Summerhill line runs up and down Hank Aaron Drive with a loop through downtown, and 85% of the route — mostly along Hank Aaron Drive — will be along bus-only lanes.
When MARTA first proposed traffic cameras to capture violations and cite motorists in 2023, it got pushback from legislators critical of how cameras have been used to enforce school zone speed limits. There’s concern that jurisdictions are ticketing at all hours, not just during school, and using the fines as a revenue generator. Oversight committee chairwoman Rep. Deborah Silcox said Thursday the school zone legislation wasn’t drafted tightly enough and needs to be fixed.
Credit: Courtesy of MARTA
Credit: Courtesy of MARTA
Larosa said the legislation MARTA is proposing during the 2025 legislative session takes lawmakers’ concerns into consideration.
MARTA is proposing a six-month warning-only period to give motorists time to adjust, Larosa said. After that, there would be a first-time violation forgiveness and graduated fines. Violations would never result in arrests. Any revenue from fines would go back to the jurisdiction where the violation occurred.
Larosa said the agency is also open to legislation that would sunset the provision in five years. That would be enough time for MARTA to show they can implement the citations fairly and accurately, she said, while giving lawmakers a way to end the program if MARTA fails.
“We would like some time to prove that we are good actors,” Larosa said.
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