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See these green buses? Here's why MARTA wants you to ride them.

MARTA hopes to have a fleet of 12 electric buses.

ATLANTA — MARTA goes green on Earth Day.

Metro Atlanta's transit authority announced Friday it is launching its first fleet of electric buses. The three buses will serve Routes 2 and 102 starting May.

The routes travel out of the North Avenue station to provide service on the Ponce de Leon Avenue corridor between Midtown and the Poncey-Highland neighborhood. This route also connects to Ponce City Market and the BeltLine eastside trail, according to MARTA. 

"Electric buses are ideal for routes that travel through dense urban corridors like the 2 and 102 -- leaving no noise or emissions in their wake," MARTA's interim general manager Collie Greenwood said. 

Greenwood added that MARTA plans to add more electric buses to its route as the transit authority works toward its sustainability goals.

Recently, Sen. Jon Ossoff, with support from Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock, secured $3.8 million in Congressionally Directed Spending to support the purchase of an additional six buses. 

This brings MARTA's electric fleet up to 12, according to a news release, adding to the six budgeted from a 2019 grant. The rest of MARTA’s bus fleet is made up mostly of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses. 

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