MARTA's 30, invites riders to celebrate

By Ariel Hart

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The 30^th anniversary of MARTA train service continues Friday with an afternoon celebration, and an evening panel discussion including U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.).

MARTA’s first passenger train rolled from the Avondale station to Georgia State University on June 30, 1979.

The agency got its start by taking on Atlanta’s existing bus system.

From 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at MARTA’s Five Points station, MARTA customers are invited to enjoy music, activities and prizes.  Then at 6 p.m. at MARTA headquarters at the Lindbergh station comes a panel discussion with Lewis and local leaders about the future of regional mass transit.

The festivities fall in the shadow of a worsening financial crisis.  The agency depends partly on a sales tax levied in Fulton and DeKalb counties, and MARTA CEO Beverly Scott and her staff have said the they cannot sustain its current operations much longer without additional funding.