Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Leadership of the board that will oversee Georgia’s new transit planning agency is taking shape — and so far, it’s mostly white with no representation from south metro Atlanta communities.
Gov. Brian Kemp appoints eight of the new Georgia Transportation Efficiency Authority’s 13 members. Seven of his picks are white, and all but one are men. The governor’s picks from the metro region come from Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties.
“That means zero, underscore zero, representation for Black females or Black males, zero representation from the south side of the metro where all of the growth is expected for the next several years,” Fulton County Commission Chair Robb Pitts said.
A spokesperson for the governor did not respond to a request for comment.
State lawmakers created the new planning agency earlier this year to replace the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority and the Atlanta-region Transit Link Authority, also known as the ATL.
Of the 13 people on the new board, five must live in the 13-county Atlanta metro area. In those counties, 61% of residents are minorities, according to the most recent U.S. Census estimates.
Two of Kemp’s appointees live in Fulton County, including Steve Brock, who led the ATL board before it was abolished. Kemp appointed three people who live outside of metro Atlanta, including Walter “Sonny” Deriso, a former chair of GRTA’s board.
Four appointments will come from the lieutenant governor and House speaker, who have not yet made their selections. Transportation Commissioner Russell McMurry rounds out the board as the 13th member.
Senate Majority Leader Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, said lawmakers created the new authority, in part, because they were frustrated by the large bureaucracy overseeing transit planning. The new board has 13 people on it, compared to 31 people who made up the two boards lawmakers voted to eliminate.
The legislation eliminated some of the powers GRTA had, including the ability to use eminent domain, and took away the ATL’s responsibility to develop and implement a regional transit plan. The new agency will continue to oversee the Xpress buses, a regional commuter line.
Pitts, who was on the ATL board, said he respects everyone Kemp nominated. But he is concerned the group doesn’t reflect the larger metro area.
Pitts said the new board’s makeup so far is in contrast to the diversity that was on the ATL board, which he said was “Black, white, young, old, straight, gay — very representative of the region.”
The former ATL board had 16 members, including three Black women and three Black men. It also included Alex Wan, the first Asian American elected to the Atlanta City Council.
The 13-county metro region was divided into 10 districts that each had a representative on the ATL board, in addition to appointees from the governor and lieutenant governor.
Data journalist Jennifer Peebles contributed to this report.
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