MARTA's Response

If you missed my earlier post about a health incident on MARTA, Atlanta's public transit system, check it out.

It was so nice of MARTA to respond.
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Good afternoon Ms. C,

We really appreciate you taking your time and sharing and submitting your comments to the Customer Service Department. I have forwarded the information to the appropriate department on your behalf. I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience you experienced witnessing the unfortunate incident during your commute home from the Braves game. I can assure you safety and security on our system is very important to us. In every station, we have blue “Emergency” phones that directly connect customers to our Police Communications Center and white assistance phones to directly connect customers to the Customer Service Department. In the event of an emergency, you may use either of these phones and police will be dispatched immediately to the scene. Also, at the Five Points Station, there is a Police Precinct and you may alert any MARTA officer, a MARTA Station Agent, or any other MARTA employee for further assistance in these situations (and others). In addition, there are call buttons on every train in each rail car, which will alert the rail operator immediately, the train will be stopped, and the situation will be accessed right away. Starting next month, the authority will begin installing cameras on every train; this project is expected to be completed by year’s end. This initiative, currently in the pilot phase, is being tested on six trains throughout the system. This security measure, in addition to cameras on buses and Mobility vans, is another way we are ensuring our customers feel safe. Even with all this technology, we still encourage our customers to let uniformed officers know if they see anything out of the ordinary. Since the inception of the “Ride With Respect” campaign in 2013, MARTA has suspended approximately 4,900 individuals for engaging in inappropriate behavior. Of that number, there have been 362 arrests for panhandling and 2,500 suspensions for fare evasion.

However, despite our best efforts, there will be times we can’t catch everything. Ultimately, we want our customers to have a positive rider experience, but we need their help to ensure the ninth-largest transit agency in the country remains one of the safest transit agencies around. We encourage you, if you have a Smartphone, to download MARTA’s “See & Say” app from iTunes or Google Play. The app allows customers to covertly take a flashless picture and send a text to MARTA’s police communications center. Once the information is received, an officer is dispatched immediately to the scene.

In addition to preventing crime and other security hazards, MARTA police have provided first aid and comfort for our customers, from senior citizens to young children. I hope this information is helpful for you and again we apologize for your experience while on our system. We certainly hope your future experiences are pleasant and we thank for allowing MARTA Customer Service Center to assist you today.

Sincerely,

 • Customer Care Representative
2424 Piedmont Road, NE • Atlanta, Georgia 30324-3330 • (404) 848-5000 • CustServ@itsmarta.com•www.itsmarta.com
Please consider the environment before printing this email.

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Thank you for your response!  My biggest concern was the man on the ground and my having absolutlely no idea about AED presence or med kits.  The rest was not a big deal, just life.  :)  

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