Brain Train pursues support, funding

A new mass transit system that will stretch from downtown to Athens and will connect several of the major universities in the metro area is seeking funding from the state and federal government to build the project. Dubbed the Brain Train because of its proximity to several of the city's universities, the project has created the College Board for the Brain Train, comprised of representatives from each of the universities, in order to promote the project on the various campus and to gain support to show to Congress.

"It's a curve from Athens, through a few suburbs and down to Tech," said Matt Vivian, a graduate CP student, who is a part of the College Board for the Brain Train.

The line will decrease the travel time between universities and between downtown Atlanta, Gwinnett County and Athens.

"The train will be a little quicker than non-rush hour traffic and a lot quicker than rush-hour traffic," said Emory Morsberger, chair of the Georgia Brain Train Group.

The proposed project would reopen an unused rail line as opposed to creating a new line.

"We are taking a railroad line existence from the 1800s and has been unused since the 1960s. There has been discussion about creating a transit line with this unused line for 19 years now," Morsberger said.

According to Morsberger, the universities were not specifically targeted during the planning stages of the project. However, the fact that it does come close to the universities will benefit all of them.

"The line will dramatically improve people's ability to get to work or study at these universities. Students will benefit by being able to cross-enroll at other universities on the line and be able to move back and forth between the universities," Morsberger said.

This view is shared by Woody Giles, a graduate CP student, and a member of the College Board for the Brain Train.

"As far as interuniversity connectivity, it would allow students to take classes at other universities. It's big for connectivity," Giles said.

The target sate for the completion of the project is 2011.

"[That] is faster than building a new road or transit line. The reason is because the line already exists," Morsberger said.

The first step in the process of completing the project is to acquire funding for the project.

"We are trying to get the project on the front burner in people's minds. The first step is to get support of the State government and U.S. Congress," Morsberger said.

The project will cost $400 million to complete and, according to Morsberger, he expects a large percentage of that bill to be funded by Congress.

"[The $400 million] is next to nothing considering the size of the project," Giles said.

The second step is that the state hires contractors to set up stations and add additional rail.

The line will not be connected to the Beltline, another mass transit project underway in the city, and only connect to MARTA downtown.

"The line will end at Five Points Station where a person can go from this central station to MARTA or Amtrak," Morsberger said.

There are plans to expand the transit line after this initial project has been completed.

"Atlanta has seven spokes radiating out [from downtown]. The line to Athens is just one of those spokes. We are looking to expand to another spoke as soon as we get this one up and running," Morsberger said.

The Brain Train Group is looking for support from the universities directly affected by the proposed transit system.

"We are seeking support from Tech's student body. We are setting up brain train clubs on the various campuses to get student support and involvement in the project," Morsberger said.

There will be events held on Tech's campus to promote awareness for the Brain Train.

"We'll be having a couple awareness programs to get feedback from students. There's a lot of potential there. It's a good idea. The region needs more connectivity," Vivian said