PLEASE CLICK HERE TO TAKE ACTION THROUGH GEORGIA ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION NETWORK

Clayton County Commissioners must act quickly to give voters a binding vote on new bus and rail service.

Problem:

Georgians need permanent ways to get out of traffic, improve air quality, and reduce dependence on oil. Expanding rail and bus options would attract walkable economic development and give Georgians travel choices other than cars.

Solution:

This year, the state has authorized Clayton County to vote to expand bus and rail service. A MARTA one cent sales tax would raise money to pay for the first segment of Georgia's commuter rail system as well as several bus lines. In order to move forward, Clayton County commissioners must allow a binding referendum on rail and bus projects.

Action Needed:

Please contact Clayton County commissioners today to ask them to put a binding vote on rail and bus service on the ballot in November.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO TAKE ACTION

Deadline for responding:

Please take action by Tuesday, August 3rd.

July 20, 2010: No vote on MARTA in Clayton on this day. House Bill 1446 called for July 20 vote, but the bill was not signed 60 days in advance of election as required by law. So vote is delayed until November.

November 2, 2010: Clayton County voters will give their opinion in a non-binding poll whether to join MARTA. The Clayton County Board of Commissioners has the power to allow voters a real vote with force of law in November instead of just a poll, but commissioners indicate they will not allow this.

Non-Binding ballot question: “Should Clayton County become a full participant in MARTA (the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) and levy a sales tax in support of MARTA and Clayton County's public transportation needs?”

Binding vote: To allow voters to actually join MARTA, Clayton County Board of Commissioners must approve a binding vote by Sept. 2. After that, the state legislature would have to grant an extension.

The investment: The one cent MARTA sales tax would raise at least $35 million a year in Clayton County.

The benefits: MARTA sales tax revenues could pay for:

·         Local Bus Routes
·         Regional Bus Routes
·         Bus Rapid Transit Routes
·         Commuter Rail from Atlanta with stops in:
            ● East Point
            ● Forest Park
            ● Morrow
            ● Jonesboro
            ● Lovejoy

Click here for Concept 3: The Atlanta Region's Long-Range Transit Vision

Click here for Clayton County's transit expansion plan.


Please support the effort to bring rail and bus to Clayton County.

Click here to give online, or make checks payable to "Georgia Conservation Voters" (not CfPT please) and mail them to:

ATTN: Vote for Transit Campaign
Georgia Conservation Voters
175 Trinity Avenue, SW
Atlanta, GA 30303

Date: Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Time: 6:30pm

Location: Shout! Restaurant

Directions:
1197 Peachtree St. NE
Atlanta, Ga 30361

This November, Clayton County will vote on a referendum to join MARTA. We need to get the word out to Clayton voters about the benefits of passing this referendum, and send a message to the rest of metro Atlanta that both bus and rail options are finally on the way!

Please join us for a Happy Hour Fundraiser June 16th. Your contribution to the Vote for Transit Campaign will help drive home the message that combining buses with rail transit attracts walkable, environmentally-friendly economic development and gets drivers out of traffic gridlock.

Let's get a "win" for transit in 2010!

Please RSVP to Ashley Robbins at (276) 780-3748 or claytonrail@gmail.com

Host Levels

Transit Oriented Developer ($1,000+)

Train Conductor ($500 - $999)

Daily Commuter ($250 - $499)

Suggested Minimum Donation: $40.00

There are 3 Ways to Give:

Click here to give online, or make checks payable to "Georgia Conservation Voters" (not CfPT please) and bring them to the event, or mail them to:

ATTN: Vote for Transit Campaign
Georgia Conservation Voters
175 Trinity Avenue, SW
Atlanta, GA 30303

ATLANTA - Mass transit advocates are celebrating Governor Sonny Perdue's signature of a bill that will allow a Clayton County vote on whether to invest a one cent sales tax in rail and bus service.

The Governor's office announced late Friday that Perdue had signed House Bill 1446.

“I am excited for the people of Clayton County and for all of us in Georgia,” said Lee Biola, president of Citizens for Progressive Transit. “Commuter rail stations would support town centers that are walkable and livable. This would give people a reliable way out of traffic.”

Clayton County voters will vote in November whether to join the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA).

While the November referendum will be non-binding, a “Yes” vote that day would open the door to a binding vote later.

The Clayton County Commission and MARTA would need to agree on a project list before bringing a binding vote to the voters. The project list is likely to include the Clayton County portion of the Atlanta-Macon commuter rail line.

The MARTA sales tax would raise substantially more money than Clayton County was spending on C-Tran, a bus-only service that shut down on March 31 of this year, so there would be plenty of funding for the rail line.

The Atlanta region's transit plan, Concept 3, shows rail lines converging on a multimodal passenger terminal in downtown Atlanta. The rail line through Clayton County stops in the cities of Forest Park, Morrow, Jonesboro, and Lovejoy.

Click here for Concept 3: The Atlanta Region's Long-Range Transit Vision

Please click here to read Citizens for Progressive Transit's May 2010 Newsletter.