C-Tran shuts down today, many riders to be left stranded

Mary Middlebrooks is one rider who stands to lose

Meet Mary Middlebrooks. Thanks to a car accident two years ago, the 54-year-old Clayton County resident walks slowly with a cane. And because she experiences blackout seizures, she can’t drive a car.

Twice a month, Middlebrooks catches a C-Tran bus to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Once there she walks straight to the MARTA station, pays her fare, and rides the train to Grady Hospital to see her doctors for check-ups and prescription refills. Some mornings she has to look for pennies to fund the trip. When she’s not taking the train to Atlanta, she relies on C-Tran to get her to the grocery store or assistance centers.

“It’s all I have,” Middlebrooks said on Friday as the train coasted into the East Point MARTA  station.

After today, Middlebrooks will be without a ride. Thanks to the county’s tight budget (and county commissioners reluctance to find other sources of cash), C-Tran will cease operations. An estimated 8,500 riders, many of whom live on low-incomes and don’t own a car, will be stranded.