CDM Smith to design largest bus rapid transit system in state of Georgia

MARTA selects CDM Smith to design the Clayton County Southlake Bus Rapid Transit project.

CDM Smith has been selected by the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) to design the Clayton County Southlake Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Alignment and Airport Connectivity project. CDM Smith and its partners will design approximately 15 miles of BRT with an elevated guideway into Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The effort is MARTA’s largest BRT project to date.

This project will greatly improve Clayton County residents’ access to job opportunities and education and will open doors for further transit-oriented development in the area. Direct premium transit service to the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and MARTA’s rail system will greatly contribute to the local and regional economies.

Planning and design work is funded by the one-cent sales tax approved by Clayton County voters in 2014. The project has submitted an application for a Small Starts grant award from the Federal Transit Administration’s Capital Investment Grants programme. The current project budget is $355.6m.

In service of its goal to provide premium transit service throughout the county, the BRT system design will include an elevated guideway, elevated bus stations and a pedestrian bridge connector to the airport terminal and MARTA train station. The design phase of the project will take two years to complete, with construction estimated to take place from 2028 to 2030.

Commenting on the project, CDM Smith principal and client service leader Chuck Deeb, said: “We brought experience from our successful BRT project portfolio and remained focused on MARTA’s goals and Clayton County’s needs to create the right team to design this BRT.”