Cobb BRT Complaint Alleges Mismanagement

A Cobb County resident has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation claiming that Cobb County’s government has mismanaged the process to secure federal grants for a bus rapid transit (BRT) line proposed for the county.

An environmental study presented to the Cobb County Board of Commissioners in 2012 claimed that BRT was allegedly submitted with false information, including a non-existent analysis of BRT systems and the idea that the board had accepted the BRT project as the preferred method of expanding mass transit into Cobb County, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The board still has not officially designated the BRT plan as the “locally preferred alternative,” which would help the county get a $250 million grant for the $500 million project, according to the AJC. Another application for a $10 million grant made the same sketchy arguments, the AJC says.

Cobb County Commission Chairman Tim Lee has publicly announced his support for a referendumon a proposed 25.3 mile-long bus rapid transit (BRT) line that would link Kennesaw State University to the Arts Center MARTA station via Cobb Parkway, the Marietta Daily Journal reports. If voters approve the BRT proposal, a new bus-only lane would be constructed along the entire route.

Commissioners told the MDJ they all support the idea of a referendum, and Commissioner Bob Ott said he would propose a motion to make the referendum call binding during the July 14 meeting.

An unofficial poll conducted by Atlanta Business Chronicle reports that 72 percent of respondents believe Cobb County voters should approve a BRT referendum, despite Cobb’s long history of resistance to higher taxes and public transit encroachments.

In 2012, Connect Cobb projected the economic impact of their plan to be significant; the group believed the transportation initiative would spur the creation of 1.2 million sq. ft. of new retail space, 11,000 new housing units, and the creation of over 50,000 jobs in the area.