MARTA recently celebrated the renaming of its paratransit service to MARTA Mobility. The name change comes as part of a major reinvestment into MARTA's paratransit service to make it more convenient and accessible for customers. The name MARTA Mobility was selected to better reflect the service being provided and to signify the Authority's commitment to further enhancements.

MARTA has added new staff, vehicles and implemented program changes to improve on-time performance and service delivery. Thirty new Lift Vans (L-Vans) have now hit the streets enabling MARTA to serve more customers timely and reliably. An additional 95 vans have been approved for purchase to replace the current vans, which have experienced mechanical difficulties and proven unreliable. The first of these new vehicles will begin arriving in late 2007.

Customers are beginning to see the results of these improvements, and MARTA will continue to assess the service and implement changes.

As part of the Americans with Disabilities Act, MARTA's paratransit service is provided to eligible persons with disabilities who are unable to board, ride or disembark from vehicles on MARTA's regular bus and rail service. Paratransit transportation is arranged by reservation and provides customers with curb to curb service for $3.50 each way in MARTA's service area.

MARTA was recently recognized by several industry organizations for its outstanding financial practices and procurement operations. Awards were presented to the Department of Finance and Office of Contracts & Procurement and Material for excellence in their respective fields.

MARTA's Finance Department received the Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association in recognition of the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for Fiscal Year 2006. This is the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government agency and its management.

The Office of Contracts, Procurement and Material was awarded the Outstanding Agency Accreditation Achievement Award by the National Institute of Government Purchasing (NIGP) for establishing a body of standards to conduct a solid purchasing operation. MARTA was commended for its substantial documentation of processes and thorough demonstration of best practices. Of the 2,600 government agencies throughout the United States and Canada that are NIGP members, MARTA is one of only 99 government agencies that have been recognized for achieving the highest sustained standards of quality and efficiency.

MARTA's full service Police Department was recently recognized for outstanding professional achievement and administrative effectiveness by the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police (GACP). The Department received state recertification from GACP by meeting 108 individual standards and documenting implementation of conceptually sound and operationally effective policies and procedures. State recertification is required every three years.

MARTA's highly trained Police Department is also one of only three transit police agencies in the nation to be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA). The Police Department meets 448 law enforcement standards for this prestigious accreditation and recently received recertification for the fourth time.

The Dave Matthews Band has teamed up with Piedmont Park Conservancy and MARTA to host an environmentally friendly concert on September 8th, which will benefit the expansion of Piedmont Park. No parking will be allowed at the Park so concert-goers will need to take MARTA to get there.

In addition to being the "green" way to go, MARTA also offers convenient and affordable transportation. Over 25,000 free daily parking spaces are available at rail stations throughout the system. For only $1.75 each way, customers can take the North/South line to the Midtown or Arts Center rail stations and make the short walk (10 to 15 minutes) to the Park. Customers are encouraged to purchase roundtrip fare at the start of their trip to avoid long lines on the return.

Visit www.itsmarta.com or call 404-848-5000 for more information on taking MARTA to the concert.

MARTA will hold a Community Exchange meeting on Tuesday, August 28, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. at the Adamsville Recreation Center (3201 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, SW) to discuss opportunities to improve service in West Atlanta, which runs North of Cascade Road, South of Bolton Road, East of Fulton Industrial Blvd and West of the I-75/I-85 Connector. The meeting will give customers an opportunity to provide feedback about Bus Routes 1, 12, 26, 37, 50, 51, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 69 and 153 which serve this area, and MARTA service as a whole. No changes are planned for these routes at this time. Maps of West Atlanta service area will be on display so that customers can offer suggestions for future service.

Community exchanges are part of MARTA's regular effort to receive public feedback and ensure that service continues to meet the needs of customers. All members of the public are invited to attend and offer comments about service in this community. Staff will be available to gather input, provide information and answer questions.

Directions using MARTA:

Take MARTA Bus Routes 73 or 160 to Adamsville Recreation Center.

A number of MARTA's bus routes have been modified to improve overall service delivery and on-time performance. These changes are part of MARTA's regular efforts to assess bus routes and receive customer feedback to ensure that service continues operating conveniently and efficiently. Visit www.itsmarta.com or call 404-848-5000 to get a list of the all the bus route changes that were implemented on Saturday, August 18, 2007.