Public transportation

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA)

MARTA is Atlanta's public transportation system, including trains and buses, serving the city of Atlanta and Fulton and Dekalb counties. Generally all rides are $1.75, and this includes bus-bus and train-bus transfers.

The train system

There are five main lines: Northeast, North, South, East, and West. All five lines meet at the center at Five Points station. The Northeast and North lines are the same until they split at Lindbergh Center station. Each station can be referred to by which branch it is on, and by how many stops it is away from Five Points. Therefore, the station two stops south of Five Points can be called the S2 station. Make yourself familiar with the MARTA rail map.

Stations near Georgia Tech

The two stations nearest Georgia Tech are the North Avenue station (N3) and the Midtown station (N4). Both are off the east end of campus. If you walk east off of campus on North Avenue towards the Varsity, after you cross West Peachtree you will see the station on your left. It is about a 15 minute walk from the GT Student Center. You can get to the Midtown station by walking east on 10th street, past Alexander Memorial Coliseum. This is about a 20-minute walk from the Student Center, but it is closer to the GLC than the North Avenue station. It is not recommended that you walk to either station alone if it is dark. The Tech Trolley (campus bus) commutes between the Midtown station and campus, and is an excellent alternative to walking.

Hours of operation at Midtown train station

Main destinations by train

The South line takes you to the Atlanta airport. From the North Avenue station the trip to the airport takes about 35 minutes. The Northeast line goes to Lenox mall, which has a lot of shopping, restaurants and movie theaters. The North line ends in Dunwoody, near Perimeter mall, which also provides some shopping. Much closer and more convenient is the Atlantic Station are just North of Homepark. You can get all your shopping and movie watching done there.

Heading South, the train can take you to downtown, near Centennial Park, to the Phillips Arena, Georgia State University, Underground Atlanta (at Five Points Stations) and the Georgia Dome. The East line goes to the town square of Decatur, which is has an interesting small-town feel not too far from the city.

Frustratingly, subway lines miss a lot of interesting destinations, for example the entertainment district of Buckhead (the Buckhead stop is near the business district, quite a hike from the entertainment district). If you are a determined public transportation user you can take your bike on Marta (it is allowed) and reach many other destinations.

Shuttles are available to take you from nearby train stops to Six Flags, Turner Stadium, or the Lakewood Amphitheater.

Buses

Buses cover much of the metro area including many areas not serviced by trains, but they come less frequently and it is more difficult to figure out where they go. If you know exactly your departure and destination locations, you can call MARTA and they will help you plan your route. Also there are complete bus maps available online, in some train stations, and through MARTA stores which exist at Lindbergh, Five Points, Airport, and Lenox Stations, as well as at some Kroger grocery stores. Generally, stops are not announced and there are no plans posted at bus stops, so you must know your route before you board the bus.

Fares and payment

All one-way fares are $1.75. Train stations have token machines for large denominations ($5, $10, $20), but most buses only take exact change in bills and coins. The fare includes transfers. If you plan to transfer to a bus from a train, you must press the "get transfer" button as you enter the gates to the train station. If you plan to transfer from one bus to another, you should request a transfer from the bus driver. You will get a small strip of paper you can use to get on the bus. You can buy tokens ahead of time and use them on the subway or bus.

There are also weekly and monthly passes. Monthly passes for students are $35 and can be purchased at the Student Center box office. These passes allow you to unlimited rides for the entire month, and are a good bargain if you commute to school by MARTA. Weekly passes and visitor passes are also available.

Campus transportation

There are four bus lines: The Tech Trolley services Tech Square, campus, and Midtown railway station. The Stinger lines (blue, green, and red) go to various places on campus, and on the weekends provide a shopping shuttle to Atlantic Station. The Stingerette is a taxi-like van escort service, which operates after the hours of the Stinger from 6pm to 6am. Call it at (404) 385-7433. NextBus offers you Online Live GPS Tracking of all GaTech Busses except for Stingerette. This is very convenient to check when the next bus will arrive at your bus station because there is no fixed schedule.