I just finished reading the article written by Marc Toro in regards to expanding MARTA outside the Perimeter. While he makes some good points, I have to strongly disagree with his entire premise. While I can fully understand his thinking, since he is a developer and stands to profit from expansion outside the Perimeter, I do not believe he speaks for the majority of people living outside the city of Atlanta.
I also grew up in the Northeast, on Long Island, N.Y. While mass transit was convenient, it has over the years changed the suburbs into a more urban environment — overcrowded roads, smaller homes, higher taxes, overflowing schools, increased cost of living, etc. That is a large part of the reason I and millions like me chose to relocate and raise my family in the suburbs of Atlanta and their lack of urban sprawl, open spaces, good schools and neighborhoods.
We who live in north Fulton County do so because we like our style of life. There’s something to be said for not fighting crowds, being able to get into your favorite restaurant, and enjoying lower taxes, bigger homes and better schools. These are all valid reasons not to expand MARTA beyond where it is now. Doing so would result in the same kind of urban sprawl that happened on Long Island, New Jersey and parts of Connecticut.
Take a ride on the Long Island Rail Road and you see how the landscape has drastically changed in just the past 20 years or so. It’s hard to tell when you leave one town for the next since they all look the same: overcrowded, dirty, small and expensive.
If you think for a minute that building mass transit is going to solve Atlanta’s traffic problems, think again. Spend an afternoon on the Long Island Expressway, Southern State Parkway, Northern State Parkway, New Jersey Turnpike or any of the major arteries feeding into New York City. The traffic is a nightmare, a lot worse than Atlanta on its worst day.
I think there is nothing wrong with wanting to live in a city, and I also think there is nothing wrong with wanting to live outside the city. Personally, I prefer suburban living, and that means not expanding MARTA beyond where it is now. Ultimately, the decision needs to be decided by the people who actually live in north Fulton communities, not by developers who live outside our region.
Michael Purpura, a retired chiropractor, lives in Milton.
