(ATLANTA, Ga.) — The Atlanta-Journal Constitution reports that a MARTA board planning committee approved a resolution to move forward with the long-planned streetcar east extension.

The Atlanta Streetcar was born as a city-driven project in 2014, and was transferred to MARTA leadership in 2018. In its almost ten years of operation, it’s been both hailed as the future of Atlanta transit and scorned as a boondoggle.

After holding town halls to gauge public opinion, the committee voted to advance the project to the full MARTA board of directors. They’ll hold a vote next month, potentially bringing the project closer to breaking ground.

The new line would extend east beyond Boulevard, connecting with the BeltLine and leading up to Ponce City Market off of Ponce de Leon Avenue. Future extensions could push the track further west, connecting with the BeltLine and could eventually form the first segments of rail along the entire BeltLine project.

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