ATLANTA — Following protests and packed MARTA board meetings with angry riders, the transportation service said it's looking for ways to lessen the impact of its controversial renovation project at the Five Points MARTA station -- however, riders should plan on street access remaining closed for at least 18 months.
MARTA said it is sticking with plans to move bus stops around the station beginning July 6 and close access from the street beginning July 29. It insists that the limited access to the station will not last the four-year duration of the project. Trains will keep running inside the station throughout the project.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens is among the people calling for a delay in the project.
Customers and transit advocates have called for a delay in the project so that the authorities can re-evaluate the impact on customers.
MARTA’s Director of Facilities, Keli Davis, tells 11Aive that engineers are actively looking for ways to open street access as soon as possible. In a follow-up email, a MARTA spokesperson tells us that the goal is to start work on demolition and deconstruction work, then re-evaluate street-level access after 18 months.
“The entire project is estimated to take four years, but street level access will not be impacted for four years,” Stephy Fisher, MARTA Senior Director of Communications. “We will continue to explore ways to mitigate customer impacts. If, during the first phase of this project, engineers can safely provide street access, that will be explored and implemented as soon as feasible.”
According to MARTA, the biggest issue is the removal of the heavy concrete canopy over the 45-year-old Five Points Station. Davis said dismantle the canopy safely, riders can’t be in the area.
“If a beam were to fall, someone could be seriously hurt,” Davis said.
In heavy rains, water pools on the canopy and leaks into the station.
“This is not a cosmetic fix, although there will be aesthetic benefits,” said Fisher. It is ultimately with safety in mind that we need to correct the deficiencies of the existing canopy design.”
Davis says efforts to repair the leaks haven’t worked.
“We have done engineering to see if we could fix the roof and found that it would cost upwards of $80 million,” said Davis.
On Thursday, MARTA Chief Capital Officer Carrie Roca told the board that engineers are considering constructing tunnels to allow public access. However, this would limit construction hours, and Roca said engineers continue to explore other options.