fun with maps (or wtf are the buses?)
the center for neighborhood technology has released a new series of maps to showcase transportation and affordability in various cities.
the atlanta maps are interesting with lots of detail, but i think the most interesting ones are the transit ones. the map above is a zoom in on the area around my house showcasing how many transit lines are within walking distance. i am lucky to live in an area where i can walk to multiple bus routes, but what shocked even me, was how many wide swaths of the city have only one transit route within walking distance. and i am not talking about suburbia (alpharetta, duluth, etc.) i am talking about buckhead, vinings, druid hills, parts of east atlanta etc.
you can play around with the atlanta map here
i suppose this is probably another reason why so few people go the marta route. when there is only one bus route it takes an insane amount of planning to make your destination on-time and makes spur-of-the-moment trips difficult. it can be done, but it definitely is hard.
a call to you gwinettians though – you can begin to help improve this by voting yes to the transit option in your upcoming primary.
h/t to ben at the excellent blog terminal station for the find.
Planning trips with MARTA is a lot easier now that Google Maps includes Public Transit information for Atlanta.
yup…absolutely. and the cpt’s a-train tool is also a pretty valuable resource….
Paying the same marta tax in Alpharetta, y’know.
I digress…
The one positive thing I liked about Rome’s bus system, and I’ve never seen this elsewhere, is that at each bus stop, there was a grid of the bus route on the sign. Nothing fancy, just the bus number, and underneath it, each of the stops that bus number made. Even if it wasn’t stopping where you were going, you could logic out pretty quickly how close it got you. Such a simple helpful thing. Here and in most other places, all I know when arriving at a bus stop is the bus #. Not so helpful.
well there are one or two lonely marta routes that ply the roads in alpharetta…i take one of ’em almost everyday.
you are right tho’. i hate the (lack of) signage at the bus stops. even the TIMES the buses are coming would be helpful….