Starting in July, regular riders of the buc shuttle will begin to see changes, and the operators hope they will be an improvement.
Beginning July 1, the buc shuttle will suspend Saturday and lunch hour service.
The Buckhead Area Transportation Management Association will also simplify the routes, using one main route to connect MARTA stations to employment centers along Peachtree, Piedmont and Lenox roads, according to a BATMA press release.
Here is a summary of the route and schedule changes:
1) The shuttle’s Blue, Green and Purple Lines will be combined into a single route – the Piedmont‐Lenox Shuttle. Service is maintained for all employers, with the added benefits of increased shuttle frequency and connections to both MARTA rail stations and new stops serving Piedmont Center buildings 1‐4 and 5‐8
2) The Piedmont‐Lenox Shuttle will operate during weekday commute hours only.
– Morning Commute (Monday through Friday) ‐ 6:30 to 9:30 a.m. (Every 10 minutes)
– Evening Commute (Monday through Friday) ‐ 3:30 to 7 p.m. (Every 10 minutes)
3) The Red Line will now be known as the Lenox Park Shuttle and will operate with no changes to its route or schedule. The Lenox Park shuttle provides “last mile” connectivity to and from MARTA’s Lenox rail station and the AT&T/Lenox Park campus. Service extends to Lenox Square’s Food Court during lunch hours.
-Weekday Service – 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. (Every 10 to 15 minutes)
-Lunchtime Extension – 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. (Every 20 minutes)
Users will be able to see real time updates using smart phones by scanning a QR code at the stop sign for each shuttle, BATMA says.
The changes have been in the works for many months were the result of a study by a contractor for the Buckhead Community Improvement District, which provides funding for the shuttle.
AECOM Technical services, CID’s consultant, found that 87 percent of the people who responded to a survey of users and non-users said they worked in Buckhead. The consultant also found shuttle riders felt the current routes and schedules were too complicated.