GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Some commuters say they faced standing room only conditions on Monday as Xpress GA implemented major service reductions across metro Atlanta.
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Saurav Sharma expected to have a seat on the bus from Gwinnett County to midtown Atlanta on Monday. Instead, he says he stood the entire ride as his route combined two previous trips into one overcrowded bus.
“This morning it was packed. Every seat was filled in because they used to be an 8:30 a.m. line. Now there’s just the eight o’clock line,” Sharma said.
However, several passengers Channel 2 Action News spoke to off-camera said their commutes on Monday were smooth and presented no issues.
The Atlanta-region Transit Link Authority says budget cuts from the Georgia Legislature and low ridership forced the changes. Current ridership remains at only 30% of pre-pandemic levels, while the agency lost $4 million in state funding this year.
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The legislature directed Xpress to develop a plan to trim service levels during the 2025 fiscal year. Officials discontinued 12 routes system-wide, leaving 15 routes across 20 park-and-ride lots.
“We were at standing room only by my stop on the third stop. I stood up the whole way here. There (were) 10, 15 other people also standing, completely packed,” Sharma said.
In Gwinnett County, the Mall of Georgia park and ride closed. Ride Gwinnett commuter bus service merged with Xpress along the Interstate 85 North corridor as part of the changes.
The changes also did away with direct service to Perimeter Center and reduced trip frequency from every 15 to 30 minutes to every 50 to 60 minutes on certain routes.
Xpress officials say they will monitor ridership and add trips if overcrowding becomes a pattern.
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