MARTA Five Points Station

You can get around Atlanta without a car, if you know how to ride MARTA.

MARTA--Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority--operates the city's subway and bus system, serving Fulton and DeKalb counties. If you're flying into Atlanta for a conference and staying at a hotel downtown you can catch the train at the airport and get to your hotel much quicker and cheaper than a cab or rental car, and you don't have to pay to park. MARTA trains will take you to the High Museum of Art, to the Lenox Square Shopping Center, Buckhead, the Georgia Dome, downtown Decatur and other places.

MARTA has two main train lines that run east-west and north-south, intersecting at the Five Points station, in the heart of Atlanta. Those trains connect to more than 138 bus routes covering more than one thousand route-miles through the city. Plan your trip by visiting MARTA's interactive system map.

Your ticket to ride is a BREEZE  available at machines in every station. The permanent plastic BREEZE card costs $5, which includes two trips (as of press time), and you can reload it with extra trips. If you'll only ride a couple times, you can buy a paper card, which costs an extra 50 cents.  A credit or debit card will buy BREEZE cards. Follow the directions on the vending machines to figure out how to add value. If you get stumped, pick up a courtesy phone or find a MARTA employee to help you figure it out. To enter the station, tap the card at the entrance and the gates open. The card also serves as your transfer if you want to continue on a bus from a train or vice versa. 

Bicycles are allowed on all MARTA trains in the last car, and each MARTA bus is equipped with a bike rack. If you need help or want to report a crime, pick up the blue telephone located on all platforms and concourses to connect to the MARTA Police. Patrons are prohibited from eating, drinking, panhandling, or play sound devices without earphones. You are allowed to drink water from a closable water bottle, but you can't eat food on the train, even if you bought it at the station.

For riders with disability who are unable to board, ride or disembark from an accessible vehicle in MARTA's regular bus or rail services, MARTA  provides ADA Complementary Paratransit Service with special lift-equipped vans on a curb-to-curb, shared ride basis. You must have an ADA Photo Identification Card and make a reservation by calling the MARTA Mobility Reservation Office at (404) 848-5826, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on weekends and holidays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Generally, there is no parking available at downtown stations and free parking outside of the city; some lots charge for cars left more than 24 hours. To find out which is which, consult MARTA's parking information.   

- by Diane Loupe, Atlanta Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)

Diane Loupe

A resident of Decatur, Ga., and a native of New Orleans, Diane has a M.A. in Journalism from the University of Missouri. She has worked for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Associated Press, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and Yale Medical School. A freelance writer and editor, her work has appeared in The Sunday Paper, Women's eNews, the Agnes Scott College alumni magazine, eSchool News, and PTO Today.