MARTA's new Stadler railcars won't enter service before 2027, CEO says

MARTA's new Stadler-built railcars will not enter service before 2027, pushed back from a planned 2025 start, General Manager and CEO Jonathan Hunt told the Atlanta City Council Transportation Committee. Yahoo reported the update from the committee meeting.

Hunt Details the Safety Certification Steps

Hunt told the committee that a recent brief was given to city council during an executive session, and that the trains made by Stadler Rail still were not ready to run. A postponement of the launch was announced in June. Councilmember Matt Westmoreland asked Hunt whether the trains would arrive around Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day or within six months.

"I learned the lesson as interim the hard way," Hunt said. "The trains will be ready when they are ready. But that said, we are extremely close, and I say that tongue in cheek because there's a safety certification document that I have to personally sign that goes to GDOT."

Hunt said the document then has to be sent from the Georgia Department of Transportation to the Federal Transit Administration to certify the trains are safe for metro Atlanta residents to ride. "Myself and the entire team takes that extremely seriously but that being said, we won't be having this discussion 68 months from now," Hunt said. A MARTA spokesman told Channel 2 Action News the agency has not given a revised public timeline yet. "MARTA is working with our partners at Stadler on the safety certification process. We look forward to introducing the first of our new trains when they are ready for revenue service, and we will share additional updates with you as we have them," MARTA said in a statement.

Marta's Federal Safety Review and Funding Record

MARTA faced an FTA federal investigation launched in June 2026 into safety practices following a fatal train stabbing and other assaults, with a 15-day deadline to produce safety plans, assault reports and training records, according to akta.pro company records. The agency's funding rounds on record number two: a $970,000 grant in January 2022 led by the Federal Transit Administration and a $12.6 million grant in March 2018 with one investor. MARTA was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Atlanta.

Earlier Marta Rollout and Budget News

On October 15, 2026, MARTA officials said they could not provide a firm rollout date for new CQ 400 trains because safety certifications remain pending, with the delay expected to be resolved within six to eight months, Yahoo reported. On October 7, 2026, MARTA officials said last fiscal year's expenses exceeded budget by nearly 17%, with a net deficit of $92.9 million, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. On October 6, 2026, a contractor hired by MARTA was about 60% through deconstructing the canopy at its busiest rail station, American City Business Journals reported.

What Comes Next for the Railcars

MARTA will begin construction on the Cleveland Avenue/Metropolitan Parkway Arterial Rapid Transit line on October 26, serving the Atlanta Southside and East Point, Yahoo reported. Stadler Rail will name Philipp Brunner as group CEO effective January 1, 2027, succeeding Markus Bernsteiner, Reuters reported.