SHOWAbility to Host Metro Atlanta Disability Transit Community Conversation

November 21st Forum Seeks to Give Disabled Rides A Voice in the Future of Public Transit Accessibility, Needed Improvements

ATLANTA, GA, UNITED STATES, October 21, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- For thousands of metro Atlanta residents with disabilities, reliable transportation is more than a convenience. It can determine whether they get to work, attend a medical appointment, participate in their communities or, for performing artists, make it to the stage or film set on time.
On Saturday, November 21, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., SHOWAbility, a nonprofit that creates opportunities for performing artists across the disability spectrum, many of whom, like their audiences, depend on transit and paratransit, will host a Metro Atlanta Transit Community Conversation for Disabled/Vulnerable Riders. The event will be held at the Loudermilk Center, 40 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303.

The Forum will focus particularly on Metro Atlanta Rapid Transportation Authority’s (MARTA) fixed-route bus and rail systems and MARTA Mobility-- its paratransit service. However, disabled riders, caregivers, advocates and stakeholders from all metro Atlanta transit services are invited. These include Ride Gwinnett: bus, plus ADA paratransit; CobbLinc (Cobb County): bus, plus Americans Disability Act (ADA) paratransit and Xpress: regional commuter coaches.
Each system reports being ADA compliant to some degree. Whether riders travel independently on fixed routes or need the added support of paratransit, the law requires equitable service.

SHOWAbility is convening the Forum because, since its inception 15 years ago, it has had to make exceptions in its programming, not because of its participants, but because of issues surrounding MARTA Mobility. For every event, SHOWAbility adds an extra hour before the start time and two extra hours after events end, so participants and guests can be safely accommodated at drop off and pick up.

Approximately 1.46 million people with disabilities live in Georgia, representing 13.5% of the state's civilian, noninstitutionalized population, according to 2023 U.S. Census American Community Survey data. In fact, the disability community is the largest minority population in the country: 28% of Americans, more than 1 in 4 people, have a disability. Add one caregiver or family member for each, and 56% of the U.S. population is connected to the disability community, with a spending power of $1.3 trillion, strongly indicating it is not a niche group, but a vital and growing consumer segment.
“The success of our programs depends on the efficiency of metro-Atlanta’s transportation system, including MARTA Mobility,” said Myrna Clayton, founder and executive director of SHOWAbility. “Transportation is the gateway to independence,” she explained. “You can create jobs, venues and programs, but if people with disabilities cannot get there safely, reliably and on time, they are once again shut out of opportunities by barriers others place in front of them,” Clayton said. “When SHOWAbility met with MARTA officials a few months ago, they agreed to investigate all our requests except one: a town hall meeting for disabled riders. MARTA’s reasoning: disabled riders are welcome at general town halls. However, SHOWAbility believes that securing additional community feedback is essential,” said Clayton.

In addition, many “Independent” disabled riders of fixed-route bus and rail transportation asking SHOWAbility to include them in this transportation conversation, due to their own various issues with feeling unheard when sharing suggestions from their lived experiences, according to Clayton.
“MARTA tends to focus its metrics only on time, but our concerns go beyond on-time performance and includes inconsistent driver performance/support, poor dispatch service and weak follow-through on complaints,” Clayton said. “At its core, this is a quality-control issue MARTA has faced for decades, ever since the Americans with Disabilities Act required paratransit service in 1990.”

This summer, during the FIFA World Cup, MARTA launched a new RideCo-powered platform for MARTA Mobility. More than four months later, on-time pickups are admittedly better, but issues around early drop-offs, driver inconsistency, poor customer service and follow-through remain.
Clayton says the timing is of the Transportation conservation ideal, as nearly five months after the launch, the Forum can provide a real-time rider assessment and solutions drawn from real-world experience. Feedback will be organized into themes and recommendations to inform future conversations with MARTA, the other agencies, and government leaders.

“The central question for which SHOWAbility is hoping to glean answers through this transit conversation and forum, is simply, ‘Is metro Atlanta’s transportation system working for riders with disabilities, and if not, where can it work better?” explained Clayton.
In the first half of the formatted forum, participants will share positive and negative experiences, from scheduling, long waits and missed pickups to customer service, station and elevator access, wheelchair access, safety, eligibility, and the impact on work, healthcare and community life. These experiences will be recorded for evaluation. The second half will focus on solutions, including what agencies are doing well.

“This Forum isn’t about MARTA or the other transit systems versus the disability community,” Clayton said. “On the contrary. It is primarily an unique community opportunity where disabled riders can speak candidly, have their experiences documented, and where transportation leaders can hear directly from the people their systems are lawfully designed to serve,” shared Clayton. “Our main goal is to move from complaints to conversation, and from conversation to real solutions."

Representatives from MARTA, Ride Gwinnett, CobbLinc, Xpress, government, disability organizations and community leadership are being invited to attend, participate, listen and contribute.

“This Transit Forum advances SHOWAbility’s Visibility → Relatability → Accessibility → Opportunity framework,” Clayton said. “For a community to be truly accessible, people must first be able to get where opportunity exists,” she said.

The Forum is FREE and open to the public. To register, email info@showability.org. For media inquiries, contact Norma Stanley at nstanley@showability.org or 678-508-3744.
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Norma F. Stanley
SHOWAbility
+1 678-508-3744
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