Metro Atlanta has a long history of business involvement in its progress. Think of Hartsfield-Jackson Airport, Bernie Marcus and the Georgia Aquarium, Arthur Blank and the Atlanta Falcons and Billy Payne and the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games. In each instance, a signature business leader created a signature success story for Atlanta.

Now, consider the issue of traffic congestion and the limited transit infrastructure we have in our region. The fact is, this issue will require the involvement of the entire business community to achieve success with regard to rail transit for our region.

The issue of mobility, especially when it comes to high-speed, commuter and light urban rail, is extremely critical to the business and economic success of metro Atlanta. Although roads are important, we simply can't build enough roads to serve the 2.5 million new people who will join our community in the next 25 years. Rail connectivity within our region, our state and our larger mega region is essential.

High-Speed to the future

Metro Atlanta is one of 10 federally designated high-speed rail corridors; in fact, it's one of just a handful of cities where two of those rail corridors intersect. But, in order for either of our intersecting corridors to move forward, the state of Georgia will need to demonstrate a local commitment to planning and funding these lines.

Neighboring states, particularly North Carolina, Florida and Tennessee are farther along in planning their segments than we are here in Georgia. North Carolina already has a statewide intercity rail network up and running.

It's well established that the successful cities of the future will be those that are connected in a multitude of ways. We must provide transportation choices to our citizens, and soon.

Commuter rail travel within Georgia

On the issue of commuter rail (often called inter-city rail), our state has delayed to the point that we are about to lose an $87 million federal appropriation to fund a commuter rail line connecting Atlanta to Griffin. The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), and others, have stepped in to facilitate an effort to move the project forward so that the (rare and nationally coveted) appropriation can be retained.

Several commuter rail corridors are in ARC's long-range transportation plans - Atlanta to Athens, Griffin, Gainesville, Senoia, Bremen and Madison. But, in addition to local and regional support, we will need state leadership and funding to move ahead. Much of that leadership must come from the business community.

Last year, Governor Sonny Perdue selected McKinsey & Company to conduct a state level review of transportation policy. This study, labeled IT3 (Investing in Tomorrow's Transportation Today), identified a resource gap that could only be addressed by the Georgia Legislature.

The 2009 Georgia Legislature then fell short, for the second year in a row, in giving voters in the Atlanta region the chance to tax themselves for the purposes of fixing the region's chronic congestion issues.

Local and light - urban rail

Notably, the Atlanta region came together through the regional Transit Planning Board (now called the Transit Implementation Board) last year with a regional transit vision called Concept 3. The plan, adopted by ARC, and its planning partners, includes several additions to the MARTA system as well as construction of a major regional light rail system, including lines connecting the Emory/CDC area, Cobb and Cherokee counties, Gwinnett County, South DeKalb and Rockdale counties, an I-285 top-end line and an intown streetcar network to include the extensive Beltline project.

Despite no expansion of the current rail system since 2000, demand for urban rail service in Atlanta continues to increase. In 2008, MARTA's heavy rail system ridership increased by 8.6 percent - the third highest growth rate in the country.

There are tremendous funding challenges today, including active involvement by our state to step forward and provide transit operating funds like many other states have done. But, I truly believe that with our collective vision, leadership and action, starting today - we can find creative ways to build the connections needed to ensure our region's mobility success far into the future.


Tad Leithead is chairman of the Transportation & Air Quality Committee at the Atlanta Regional Commission