Atlanta, GA — Starting next month, MARTA will launch a six-month trial of a rideshare service connecting riders to MARTA bus and rail stops.

The program, MARTA Reach, launches March 1 in West Atlanta, Belvedere Park, and the Gillem Logistics Center. The shuttle costs $2.50, the same as a MARTA fare.

According to The Champion newspaper, the Belvedere shuttle area will be known as the Belvedere Zone and includes West College Avenue. The zone will extend south to Glenwood Road, west to 2nd Avenue and East Lake Drive and east to South Columbia Drive. To read that story, click here.

“In partnership with Georgia Tech, MARTA Reach will test how on-demand shuttles can be used to make it easier and faster for customers to get to their destinations using MARTA and help minimize waiting and walking,” the Transit Authority said in a press release.

MARTA interim General Manager Collie Greenwood said, “Exploring first- and last-mile connectivity options is important in providing transit service that meets the needs of everyone in metro Atlanta. This pilot program will test the system’s efficiency and provide information on whether a large-scale version would work across MARTA’s service area as we undertake a comprehensive redesign of our bus network.”

According to a press release, MARTA and Georgia Tech Research Cooperation received a $1 million grant last fall from the U.S. National Science Foundation to pilot the program.

MARTA is hosting a launch event on Feb. 28, and details about that event will be provided soon.

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