The Red Line is a
rapid transit
Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...
line in the
MARTA
Marta may refer to:
People
* Marta (given name), a feminine given name
* Märta, a feminine given name
* Marta (surname)
:István Márta composer
* Marta (footballer) (born 1986), Brazilian professional footballer
Places
* Marta (river), an ...
rail system
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
. It operates between
North Springs and
Airport
An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...
stations, running through
Sandy Springs
Sandy Springs is a city in northern Fulton County, Georgia and an inner ring suburb of Atlanta. The city's population was 108,080 at the 2020 census, making it Georgia's seventh-largest city. It is the site of several corporate headquarters, i ...
,
Dunwoody
Dunwoody is a city located in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. As a northern suburb of Atlanta, Dunwoody is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. It was incorporated as a city on December 1, 2008 but its area establishment dates back to ...
,
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
East Point East Point is the name of several places:
In Australia
* East Point, Northern Territory
** East Point Military museum located in East Point, Northern Territory
In Canada
*East Point, Prince Edward Island
In Hong Kong:
*East Point, Hong Kong
In ...
and
College Park.
The Red Line was originally called the North-South Line until MARTA switched to a color-based naming system in October 2009. The North-South Line, from its launch, was considered one line, denoted with an orange color on old system maps until 2006 when the North Branch and the Northeast branch were redesignated as the North-South Line (the current Red Line) and the Northeast-South Line (the current
Gold Line). Using the
Five Points station
Five Points is a metro station of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system in Atlanta, Georgia. It is the transfer point for all rail lines and serves as the main transportation hub for MARTA. It provides access to Sta ...
as a reference point, the North Line was designated for trips headed for North Springs, and the South Line was designated for trips headed for the Airport.
The rail line was part of the launch of MARTA north–south rail service in 1981. The first segment ran from the Garnett to the North Avenue stations, although the Peachtree Center opened the year after as an infill. In 1982, it expanded north to Arts Center, and in 1984, expanded as far north as Brookhaven and as far south as Lakewood/Fort McPherson. The East Point station opened, extending the line two miles to the south. A little more than a year later, the Chamblee station began service and served as the temporary terminus of the North Line. In 1988, the Airport station opened, and became the terminus of the South Line. In 1992, the North-South Line was extended northward to its current terminus at Doraville. In 1996, MARTA extended North Line services to Dunwoody. This created two branches of the North Line, and the Doraville branch was redesignated as the Northeast Line to avoid confusion. It finally extended north to its current terminus at North Springs in 2000.
Now known as the Red Line, it shares trackage with its counterpart, the Gold Line, between Airport and just north of the Lindbergh Center.
On weekdays, after 8:30 pm, Red Line shuttle train service operates between North Springs and Lindbergh Center stations only until the end of the service. On Saturdays and Sundays, Red Line shuttle train service operates between North Springs and Lindbergh Center stations only from 8:50 pm until the end of the service. When major single tracking occurs, Red Line train service operates between North Springs and Lindbergh Center stations only.
Line description
The Red Line runs above ground, at-grade and below ground in various portions of its route. It begins at the northern terminus, the North Springs station in Sandy Springs. The non-revenue tracks extend northward from the station. It then goes southward paralleling
GA 400 (Turner McDonald Parkway) before turning southeast to Dunwoody, then turning south to cross over
I-285, then west before running south in the GA 400 median. In Buckhead, it crosses ''under'' the Gold Line before joining the Gold Line, going southwest paralleling
I-85
Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with Interstate 65, I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with Interstate 95, I ...
. It turns south through Midtown and enters downtown Atlanta, where it meets the
Blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
and
Green
Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...
Lines at Five Points station. Leaving downtown, the Red Line continues south, paralleling Lee Street and Main Street into East Point and College Park before reaching its terminus at the Airport station.
Stations
''listed from north to south''
*Note: The east–west (now Blue/Green Line) platform opened in 1979.
External links
Red Line overviewRed Line schedule
{{authority control
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
Railway lines opened in 1996
Railway lines in highway medians
1996 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)