Three weeks after it slipped through the Legislature, a bill to permit licensed owners to carry concealed firearms in parks, on public transportation and in booze-serving restaurants has resulted in a delayed storm of protest urging Gov. Sonny Perdue to veto the measure.

MARTA bus drivers already have 1,000 signatures on a petition demanding bulletproof shields, should HB 89 be signed into law. The Georgia Restaurant Association, wondering how waiters and waitresses are to keep patrons from both drinking and packing, is prepared to go to court.

And on Thursday, led by Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, a group of two dozen political, business and community leaders warned of increased violence and citizens-turned-enforcers if Perdue approves the attempt to expand the list of public venues where firearms can be carried under jackets and in purses.

"The method in which I would choose to wind up handling security and safety on the MARTA system is not by vigilantism," said Beverly Scott, the system's general manager. "That's insanity."

Ben DeCosta, who runs Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, noted that —- because MARTA has a station inside the complex —- the governor's signature on the bill would put airport security "under a cloud."

And Franklin said that police officers, at events such as the Atlanta Dogwood Festival or the Peachtree Road Race, would have to presume that weaponry is scattered among the huge crowds.

"The presumption needs to be, in order to have a safe city, that there are no concealed weapons," the mayor said. Police Chief Richard Pennington also spoke against the measure.

Standing at the back of the City Hall news conference was state Rep. Tim Bearden (R-Villa Rica), sponsor of the bill and a former police officer.

"They cannot protect you in Atlanta. They never have," said Bearden. "I was in law enforcement 15 years. I never rode up on a shooting in progress. I don't like the idea of the police telling you: 'Get mugged, get raped, get murdered. We'll come by, take the report, or send flowers.' That's the wrong message."

The National Rifle Association and other gun rights groups also have urged their members, who number in the tens of thousands, to contact the governor —- and help the gun measure clear its final hurdle.

"It's good public policy that protects the rights of law-abiding Georgians," said NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam.

An aide to the governor, who has until mid-May to make a decision, says the bill has generated more comment from citizens than any other passed by the Legislature this year.

Although an advocate of gun rights, the governor has been known to pick the occasional fight with the NRA.

Perdue said Thursday he already has begun his analysis of the legislation, and promised a decision "soon." But he left both supporters and opponents of HB 89 guessing.

"What does it mean to have a Georgia firearms license, and what should that mean?" the governor asked Thursday. But Perdue also said the first principle of government should be to "do no harm."

HB 89 was passed by the Legislature in the final hours of the 2008 session. Throughout the session, most of the debate on the measure had concerned a provision to permit employees to keep guns in vehicles parked on corporate parking lots. But when HB 89 made its final appearance before both the House and Senate, language was included that expanded the list of public places where holders of concealed weapons permits could take their guns.

A provision to permit weapons in churches was stripped out, but, for the first time, permit holders would be allowed to pack heat on public transportation, and in restaurants that serve alcohol.

Restaurant patrons would be permitted to carry a firearm, but would be barred from drinking. Violations would be a misdemeanor.

"It's an impossible bill to enforce. We're not going to say, 'Would you like a cocktail and —- by the way —- are you carrying a gun?' That's our issue, is this notion that it's an honor system," said Ron Wolf, CEO of the Georgia Restaurant Association.

Wolf said he'd rather see the governor veto the bill, but said a lawsuit is a distinct possibility if Perdue does not.

"If it passes, we're certainly not going to roll over and say that's fine," he said.

Bus drivers have similar issues. "There's no way to determine who has a weapon, or who doesn't have a license to carry," said Trina Westwood, a seven-year driver for MARTA. "There's no way for us to determine that, and it would be cruel to even ask us to determine that."

Terry Jackson, another MARTA driver with 12 years' experience, has started a petition demanding protective shields for bus operators —- if this legislation passes.

"We don't want cameras. Cameras don't save people's lives. ... We want something that gives us a fighting chance," Jackson said.

MARTA isn't the only public transportation agency affected by the bill. The Georgia Transit Association, whose members include more than 100 rural transit operations, also has asked Perdue to veto the legislation.

More people would feel less safe, said Robert Hiett, a gun owner and president of the GTA. Passengers, he said, would "stop riding or they [would] start packing."

Liability is a top concern, Hiett said. "If something happens, the insurance company could decide not to cover public transit, or could significantly increase the rates. I know that would impact rural systems a lot more than it would the [urban ones]."