Many of MARTA’s most unreliable routes are community circulators — short routes with fewer stops and often low ridership. But some of MARTA’s highest-ridership routes are also prone to cancellations.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution looked at three years of bus cancellation data, from 2023 to 2025. Use our MARTA bus cancellation tool to check out how reliable your route was last year.
Here’s what cancellations looked like on various routes throughout the system last year:
Route 221
This was the most unreliable route in 2025. Nearly 9% of all trips were canceled on this route, a limited-stop version of the Memorial Drive route that only runs during weekday peak service hours. Under the NextGen network, this route is being replaced with Route 121 and is scheduled to run every 15 minutes.
Route 853
This route serves the predominantly Black neighborhood of Collier Heights. More than 7% of its trips were canceled in 2025, the highest cancellation rate for any full-service route in the system. Under the NextGen network, this route has been eliminated, but the area will be served by Routes 2, 3, 10, 51 and 301, an on-demand Reach zone.
Route 39
The Buford Highway route, one of MARTA’s highest-ridership routes, was canceled more than 3% of the time in 2025. Staffing issues were to blame for two-thirds of the cancellations. Under NextGen, this route is scheduled to run every 15 minutes instead of 20.
Route 73
This route, which runs from H.E. Holmes Station to Fulton Industrial Park, is another high-ridership route with frequent cancellations. Last year, 4% of trips were canceled. Under NextGen, parts of this route will be replaced with Reach on-demand service. The 15-minute interval between buses on the route will stay the same.
About the Authors
Keep Reading
The Latest
Featured
