The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

■ MARTA spends big for signs to guide Super Bowl fans,

- By David Wickert dwickert@ajc.com

Of all the names that adorn the MARTA station where most Super Bowl fans are likely to get off, not one is likely to assure out-of-towners that they’re in the right place.

Officially, it’s the Dome/ GWCC/Philips Arena/CNN Center Station, a bewilderin­g alphabet soup that — for all its letters — coveys no sense that this is where you get off for Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Indeed, you can’t find two of the four landmarks the station is named for, because they no longer exist.

Philips Arena became State Farm Arena 15 months ago. The Georgia Dome imploded a month later, replaced by Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Only the Georgia World Congress Center and CNN Center remain.

That MARTA hasn’t renamed the station more than a year later underscore­s the difficult local politics of something as simple as the name of a transit station.

For months the MARTA board has been pummeled by some residents of Atlanta’s West End neighborho­od, who are upset the agency renamed their station for civil rights icons last year. The new name: The Juanita Jones and Ralph David Abernathy at West End Station. The residents want the name switched back to just West End Station, in honor of their neighborho­od.

Amid the controvers­y, the MARTA board is revisiting its policies for naming stations. The new policy likely will ensure plenty of public input before a station name is changed.

But it could be months before the policy is finalized, and longer before the Dome Station (as it’s known, for short) gets a new name. In the meantime, the agency is adding new signs to guide passengers to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in time for the Super Bowl.

David Springstea­d, MARTA’s chief of rail operations, said the agency is spending more than $100,000 on new signs at various locations. Though some are temporary, most will be used long after the Super Bowl.

“We don’t want to spend a bunch of money on signs that will never be used again,” Springstea­d said.

The agency also is deploying more than 600 transit “ambassador­s” to help football fans find their way to Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the Super Bowl and related events.

For the record, there are two MARTA stations with easy access to the stadium. The other — Vine City Station — is named for an Atlanta neighborho­od that still exists.

 ?? ALYSSA POINTER/ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM ?? Employees of Advantage Graphics & Signs rolled out the new signage that will direct attendees to Mercedes-Benz Stadium at the MARTA Dome/GWCC/Philips Arena/CNN Center Transit.
ALYSSA POINTER/ALYSSA.POINTER@AJC.COM Employees of Advantage Graphics & Signs rolled out the new signage that will direct attendees to Mercedes-Benz Stadium at the MARTA Dome/GWCC/Philips Arena/CNN Center Transit.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States