Atlantic Station Shuttle

A great way to get to and from Arts Center station and around Atlantic Station. I take MARTA Monday-​Friday and hop on the shuttle and head to my office at Wells Fargo. Generally the shuttle is pretty reliable. Towards the end of the day, it can get a little crowded and may be standing room only, but hey, it is free. Pro Tip — there is an app for iphone/​androids to track in real time where the shuttles are. Use it to help plan your commute.

I tried to use the shuttle this morning to go to the airport. The operative word here being tried. I was leaving 12 Atlantic Station at 6am. I checked the TransLoc app and don’t see a bus on the route. They are supposed to start at 5am. Maybe they actually start at 6am so I watch the app. Still nothing. I go downstairs to try and get a cab. I decide to walk outside and low and behold the shuttle is sitting my stop. My guess, the driver didn’t turn on the transponder. There is no way I can get to the bus in time as it is already moving. I’ll just wait for it to come around again. It’s 57 degrees on a windy morning. I stand at the stop for 15 min. Finally, I see the bus. But the Out if Service light is lit. The driver says he has to go trade out buses. Can he go around one more time since it is obvious I am going to the airport and it’s in the 50’s outside? Hell no! I’ll just have to wait another 15 min while he changes out the bus. So instead of paying $ 2.50 to ride Marta to the airport, I’m now paying $ 11 a day to park my car in an airport parking lot. Thanks Atlantic Station Shuttle!

The shuttle is free, which is one reason I chose to live in Atlantic Station. But, the times are increasingly erratic. If, like me, you rely on it for work… taxis will become a regular cost.
In the past the shuttle would come every 15 minutes or less. If you download their app you’ll see that times vary from 15 minute to almost 30 minute intervals – especially during mornings.
Plan ahead, get up much earlier than you need to, and always have cash for a cab. Or use it when you’re not on the clock and enjoy.

As a resident of Atlantic Station, I use the free shuttle service whenever I need to get to MARTA. It’s super convenient and I feel very fortunate this service exists. Over the years, the shuttle has had minor changes to the route (stop locations) and schedule. At times, I found it exceedingly difficult to find information online about the route and schedule changes. I told some of the folks that work at Atlantic Station and finally, there is some reliable shuttle info online. Hopefully, by the time you read this, these links will still be active:
Shuttle hours of operation and contact phone numbers:
Shuttle route map, live in real time:
The shuttle runs 7 days a week, 5am to 1am. It even runs on some, if not all, holidays. I’d double-​check by calling one of the numbers in the first link listed above or by tweeting @AtlanticStation. Shuttles are supposed to arrive at each stop every 15 – 25 minutes, Monday-​Friday, and every 20 – 30 minutes, Saturday-​Sunday. In my experience, I have found this to be true. I want to say they have 2 buses running the loop on weekdays and only 1 on the weekends.
I really like the latest buses they’ve added to the fleet. They’re much bigger and colorfully decorated with the Atlantic Station logo on the outside. All of the buses are clean, well air-​conditioned (and heated), spacious, and comfortable. Whenever I’m airport-​bound, there is more than enough room for me to bring my luggage on board. The shuttle is popular and sometimes there may be packed buses. However, I’ve never been denied entry. Other times, I’ve boarded the shuttle and I’m one of only 2 – 3 people on board.
Despite several years of use now, the shuttles are still in pretty good condition.
I’ve found most of the drivers to be friendly. In March/​April, MARTA changed the Atlantic Station pick-​up/​drop-​off point to a temporary location on Arts Center Way. One of the shuttle drivers got out of the shuttle and walked down to the MARTA bus terminal to pick up travelers who weren’t aware of the temporary stop change. That was nice of her. Signage of the shuttle stop inside the Arts Center station is usually pretty straightforward.

FREE.
So incredibly easy to get from Arts Center station out to mega shopping, be that Victoria’s Secret, West Elm, Publix, Target, or going to a restaurant like Rosa Mexicana.
The ride is about 5 – 10 minutes before starting to drop off throughout the loop.
I foolishly thought the shuttle circled high art establishments and greens, so hopped on, only to be bitten by the shopping bug. Flexibility saved the day.

The FREE shuttle around Atlantic Station runs 7 days a week from 5am to 1am. I live in Buckhead and take MARTA to the Arts Center station and then jump on this shuttle for a short ride to Atlantic Station. The buses are clean and air-​conditioned. And the drivers are friendly. This is a great way to avoid jammed up Atlanta traffic. The route goes as far as Ikea, an added benefit.

This is an awesome free service to provide especially for those who NEED the transportation. We do not need it but use if whenever we are going to Midtown on the opposite side of the interstate or to Piedmont Park.
Most of the drivers are really friendly and the trip is so short, never more than a few minutes long.
Great way to get to and from from Atlantic Station to the High Museum, Piedmont Park, MARTA, Fox Theater and all the Midtown restaurants.

It’s Free!
If that’s not enough to persuade you, it’s clean. It’s connected to MARTA. It has just enough stops that you don’t have to walk too far, but not so many that you feel that you could walk faster.
There are signs that say they enforce the capacity limit, but these small buses hold plenty of people. I’ve never seen anyone turned away.
#Yelp365 — ²⁶⁵⁄₃₆₅

We almost got hit by bus #406 today at noon. and as we honked and locked up our brakes to swerve out of the way as the driver rolled the stop sign in front of IKEA she didn’t even look at us.

Walking is ALWAYS faster. I’ve timed it many, many a time. By the time you wait for the shuttle, get on it and ride you could’ve walked. No real rhyme or reason to the scheduling either.

The shuttle is one of the reasons that I moved to Atlantic Station when I moved to Atlanta. I have lived here for a year and a half, and I ride the shuttle regularly. It’s very difficult to not give it 5 stars since it is totally free, but there are some issues. The main one is what was mentioned — sometimes it is very crowded coming back from the Arts Center station. However, I avoid this most of the time, because I am only traveling that way later at night. The other issue is the amount of kids on the shuttle on the weekends — that can make the ride back a little annoying.
Other than that, it has been fantastic. They have shortened the route so it essentially just goes up and down 17^th street, and this seems to have made the shuttle more reliable since the path is more predictable (since it doesn’t have to avoid the pedestrians in Atlantic Station) and quicker. They have also added some larger shuttles that deal with the crowding problem better.
The shuttle has allowed me to exist almost entirely without a car, and thus the wife and I just split one car. Very rare in Atlanta, and I very much appreciate it. I would be more than willing to pay for a monthly pass if it would actually go toward improving the service a little, however, a lot of people would probably avoid it then.

Inconsistent service. I take the shuttle in my daily commute to work/​school/​home, and I find myself often frustrated (at least twice every week) in the afternoons when I’m waiting at the Arts Center MARTA Station for the shuttle to arrive. On bad days, I’ve had to wait up to 50 minutes for a shuttle bus because a series of shuttle bus drivers would say their bus is out of service. I get so angry when I see shuttles back to back because that’s when I’ve been waiting for one for at least 40 minutes!
The morning drivers are more timely than the afternoon drivers. I usually wait between 3 to 15 minutes for the morning shuttles.
Anyway, I am glad that the free shuttle service exists because it allowed me to live in Atlanta without a car for seven months. I just wish we didn’t have to wait more than 15 minutes for an available shuttle to ride.
I also hated it when a certain bus driver saw me running after the bus, stopped the bus, opened the door just to shout, «You can only get on at the shuttle stop,» before driving off and leaving me in the dust. I am so glad that guy is no longer driving an Atlantic Station shuttle.

Recently, with all the construction going around Atlantic Station, the stops changed — the shuttle buses do not actually go into Atlantic Station, just the outskirts of it. Thus, we gotta walk quite a bit after we get off the shuttles. Hopefully, they’ll change the routes back to normal once construction is complete. That is the only reason for the 4 stars. Other than that, I’m thankful for the shuttles. Whoever thought up of this idea is one cool cat.

I love the shuttle bus, it’s free, fast & friendly. I love when the drivers announce the next stop is…
At times the bus will be busy and very full.
I love how fast they are right behind each other, back 2 back.
=)
I HOPE SOON THEY WILL PURCHASE A BIGGER BUS BECAUSE ATLANTIC STATION IS BOOMING

sometimes i wonder how many shuttles are there.
the shuttles are always reliable because its frequent and its free. sometimes there are too many people and the wait might be 5 mins longer than usual coz its full but i never had a real complaint taking the shuttles. most of the drivers are pretty laid back and quite nice to talk to. they are not generic, ie: the bus stop is there too bad i cant stop here and you cant run as fast as me so i guess its the next bus for you; and they would throw in a nice compliment here and there about your clothes or your hair just to cheer you up. :)
now thats good southern hospitality!

My boyfriend and I use to live at Element (condo across from the stores/​mall area) and I took the shuttle on a regular basis to get to work. My job was about one block away from the Marta Station that the shuttle rides too.
I would give it four stars, but since I’m one of few that actually take the bus for purposes of getting to work instead of shopping, I believe it could be better in many ways.
I never had problems getting on the bus in the mornings. Usually I won’t wait longer than 15 minutes, but there been days that I’ve waited for longer (especially Friday mornings for some reason) and it wasn’t due to the shuttle being full, but rather they had only one bus going from Marta to Atlantic Station.
In the afternoons I resorted to walking home most days because the bus would be too full. I don’t mind waiting for the shuttle, but most of the time the people on the shuttle would be rude or there will be times that the shuttle would be so full that getting off the stop you needed to get off on would be missed (or you’ll have to yell at the driver to stop) since they assume most people who are picked up from Atlantic Station were people who needs to go straight to Marta.
If you live in Atlantic Station, then most of you know what I’m talking about.
There’s been numerous occasion when the bus driver would drive like a mad person. I don’t know if they’re just bored and want to put others in danger, but a lot of the times when I rode it home, the drivers would be mad and would drive crazy throughout the area.
I guess the PRO is that it is free and I didn’t have to pay to park for where I worked at (which was expensive) since it was in one of those big corporate buildings.
I believe that if they had more frequent buses in the morning especially (there are people who take Marta to get to their jobs) and have some driving lessons, then I think it’ll be a better system.

Totally with the other Unilocalers on this one — it’s free, it’s frequent and it’s fast! Ok. It’s not thhhatt fast. Just had to throw that one in there for alliteration’s sake. But it’s as fast as one can go down the pre-​fab streets of Atlantic Station.
Though there’s much to be desired about Atlantic Station, getting from Point A to Point B of the handful of stores on the shuttle was a nice reprieve from taking a extremely long walk or reparking the car — on a whim, I took it from Target to H&M. The driver was friendly, and they really do come ever 15 – 20 mintues, too!

Hey, like Khadijah said it’s free. I’ve caught the shuttle on occasion to Atlantic Station.
The plus that I must brag about is how reliable it is. There is always one in site. It doesn’t take long to get from the Marta Station to your destination either.
A+ Atlantic Station Shuttle (LMAO look at the initials)

Free transportation, what more can be said. I enjoyed that you can park at Ikea and get a free ride to Atlantic Station with out having to worry about the cost of parking there. Some times the shuttle is full so there is a wait but your patience will be rewarded.