Five Points station

Five Points is a metro station of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) rail system in Atlanta, Georgia. It is the transfer point for all rail lines and serves as the main transportation hub for MARTA. It provides access to the Five Points Business District, Georgia State University, Underground Atlanta, City Hall, the Richard B. Russell Federal Building, CobbLinc (Formerly known as Cobb Community Transit), Ride Gwinnett (Formerly known as Gwinnett County Transit), GRTA Xpress Transit, Station Soccer, and the tourism heart of Downtown Atlanta. It provides connecting bus service to Zoo Atlanta, Grant Park, Atlanta University Center, East Atlanta Village, Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, Carter Center, Atlanta City Hall, South Dekalb Mall and Fulton County Government Center.

Five Points station building

Five Points
MARTA rapid transit station
An eastbound Green Line train arrives at Five Points station.
General information
Location	20 Broad St SW Atlanta, GA 30303
Coordinates	33.753826°N 84.391571°W / 33.753826; -84.391571
Platforms	4 side platforms (two per level) 2 island platforms (one per level)
Tracks	4 (2 per level)
Connections	MARTA Bus: 3, 21, 26, 40, 42, 49, 55, 186, 813, 816, CobbLinc Ride Gwinnett GRTA
Construction
Structure type	Underground (Red and Gold Lines) At-grade (Blue and Green Lines)
Platform levels	1 for Blue and Green Lines, 1 for Red and Gold Lines, plus a third concourse level for faregates, and additionally a plaza level.
Parking	None
Bicycle facilities	None
Accessible	Yes
Architect	Finch-Heery[1]
History
Opened	December 22, 1979; 44 years ago (1979-12-22) (East-West) December 4, 1981; 42 years ago (1981-12-04) (North-South)
Passengers
2013	19,447 (avg. weekday)[2]  3.43%
Services
Preceding station MARTA Following station Garnett toward Airport Gold Line Peachtree Center toward Doraville Red Line Peachtree Center toward North Springs GWCC/​CNN Center toward Hamilton E. Holmes Blue Line Georgia State toward Indian Creek GWCC/​CNN Center toward Bankhead Green Line Georgia State toward King Memorial or Edgewood/​Candler Park
Location

Despite being considered a subway, only the Red and Gold Lines are underground and use a tunnel under Broad Street between Garnett and Peachtree Center. The Blue and Green Lines, on the second level, are located at-grade below the intersecting elevated street viaducts in Downtown Atlanta.

Station layout

1F	Street Level	Forsyth and Alabama Streets, plaza level
G	Concourse	Peachtree Street, fare barriers
B1 Platform level	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Westbound	← Green Line toward Bankhead (GWCC/CNN Center) ← Blue Line toward H. E. Holmes (GWCC/CNN Center)
	Island platform, doors will open on the left
	Eastbound	→ Green Line toward Edgewood / Candler Park (weekends toward King Memorial) (Georgia State) → → Blue Line toward Indian Creek (Georgia State) →
	Side platform, doors will open on the right
B2 Platform level	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Southbound	← Red Line, Gold Line toward Airport (Garnett)
	Island platform, doors will open on the left
	Northbound	→ Gold Line toward Doraville (Peachtree Center) → → Red Line toward North Springs (Peachtree Center) →
	Side platform, doors will open on the right

Plaza entrance to the Five Points station

Facade of the Eiseman Building in the Five Points Station

The station is composed of three levels, and an additional plaza level. At the surface is the plaza level, which provides access to the concourse level, Alabama Street, and shopping along a pedestrian only portion of Broad Street. The plaza level also houses the MARTA police precinct. The plaza level connects to the concourse level, which has the faregates and provides access to the rail platforms. Outside the paid area are the MARTA Ride Store, Reduced Fare Office, and Lost and Found, and a Zip car address. Outside the faregates are stairs to Peachtree Street, Alabama Street, and Forsyth Street. Within the faregates are restrooms, an information kiosk, and stairs to the platforms. Directly underneath the concourse level are the Blue Line and Green Line platforms. Running underneath and perpendicular to the Blue/Green platforms are the Red Line and Gold Line platforms. At the end of the platform is the original facade of the Eiseman Building, which was demolished to make way for the station; however, the facade is more visible from some of the platforms.^[3] Elevators provide disabled access to all levels of the station. This is the busiest station in the MARTA system, handling an average of 57,000 people per business day, and over 27,000 on weekends.

History

Preliminary planning and design of the entire MARTA heavy rail system began in 1967 after Georgia state legislature approval of MARTA's 1966 creation, with early blueprints ready in mid-1968.^{[citation needed]} Design and engineering began in 1973; existing properties were acquired, demolished and underwent site preparation in 1974–1975, and actual construction began in early 1976.^{[citation needed]} The station was constructed using the cut-and-cover method. The Gold Line (then called North-South line) was built beneath Broad Street, and the Blue Line (then called East-West line) was constructed next to the railroad freight lines that run through Downtown Atlanta. Five Points opened on December 22, 1979 with only the original East-West platform open.^{[citation needed]} The initial opening of the station was almost delayed because of construction on the lower level. The North-South platform did not open until December 4, 1981.^{[citation needed]} Major renovations to both the east and west street-level plazas of the station began in April 2006.^{[citation needed]}

In 2016, a section of the station was converted into a small soccer field funded by MARTA and Atlanta United FC, the city's new Major League Soccer team.^[4][5] A tunnel to Underground Atlanta was located on the Peachtree Street side of the station, just outside of the faregates. It closed in 2017, in combination with the closure of Underground Atlanta for renovations, and is now inaccessible from both Five Points and Underground Atlanta.^[6] Another tunnel existed that led to Rich's (department store) from 1979 to 1991 when the department store was closed, and eventually demolished in 1994.^[7] The tunnel remains and is now an employee entrance to the Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center.

Attractions

• Station Soccer
• City Hall
• Fulton County Annex
• Richard B. Russell Federal Building
• Five Points (Atlanta)
• Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center
• Underground Atlanta
• Rich's (department store) (formerly)

Bus routes

The station is served by the following MARTA bus routes:

• Route 3 - Martin Luther King Jr. Drive / Auburn Avenue
• Route 21 - Memorial Drive
• Route 26 - Marietta Street / Perry Boulevard.
• Route 40 - Peachtree Street / Downtown
• Route 42 - Pryor Road.
• Route 49 - McDonough Boulevard
• Route 55 - Jonesboro Road
• Route 186 - Rainbow Drive / South DeKalb
• Route 813 - Atlanta Student Movement Blvd.
• Route 816 - North Highland Avenue

Connection to other transit systems

• CobbLinc
• Ride Gwinnett
• Georgia Regional Transportation Authority

References

1. Gournay, Isabelle. AIA guide to the architecture of Atlanta. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press. p. 17. ISBN 978-0820314501.
2. "2014 Transportation Fact Book" (PDF). Atlanta Regional Commission. Retrieved 9 January 2016.
3. "Eiseman Facade". jolomo.net. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
4. Pendley, Camille (March 21, 2017). "Soccer in the Streets brings the game to MARTA's Five Points station". Atlanta Magazine. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
5. Hall, Matthew (April 18, 2018). "Atlanta's subway soccer fields: the 'crazy' idea breaking down barriers". The Guardian. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
6. "Underground Atlanta - Entertainment District in Five Points". Discover Atlanta. Retrieved 2023-02-24.
7. "marta0101 6". digitalcollections.library.gsu.edu. Retrieved 2023-04-17.

External links

• MARTA Station Page
• nycsubway.org Atlanta page
• Photo showing construction of the Five Points MARTA station - #1
• Photo showing construction of the Five Points MARTA station - #2
• Forsyth Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Peachtree Street entrance from Google Maps Street View

Gallery

Former entrance to Underground Atlanta

Former entrance to Rich's department store (now Sam Nunn Federal Building)