ATLANTA — The Atlanta Beltline announced an expansion of its ATL Spoke autonomous transit shuttle Wednesday to connect to the Atlanta University Center.
The updated route adds a new link for students, faculty, staff and residents, extending a service that already connects the West End MARTA Station, the Atlanta Beltline Southwest Trail and the Lee + White district.
Channel 2 Action News reported when ATL Spoke launched in June 2026. It is the city’s first autonomous public transit shuttle deployment.
The yearlong pilot project is designed to evaluate how autonomous technology can support neighborhood transit connections and address first- and last-mile travel gaps in Southwest Atlanta.
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The fleet consists of four autonomous shuttle vehicles provided through mobility service provider Beep. Each one is ADA accessible and can carry up to 12 passengers. A dedicated onboard attendant is present on every shuttle to answer questions, oversee operations and manually steer the vehicle if necessary.
The project is supported by a $1.75 million grant from the Georgia Transportation Efficiency Authority.
The shuttle runs along approximately two miles of public streets in Southwest Atlanta.
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The initial service route included stops at the West End MARTA Station, Joseph E. Lowery Blvd at Beecher Street and two locations within the Lee + White district, including the Food Hall on the west and Boxcar/Wild Heaven on the east.
Clyde Higgs, president and CEO of Atlanta Beltline, Inc., said the partnership with ATL Spoke was an example of how the organization is working to expand local transit connections ahead of the fall academic term.
“As we think about the future of equitable urban development, we have to focus on how we connect people to opportunity,” Higgs said. “By extending this pilot to the Atlanta University Center, we are not only expanding mobility options for students, faculty, staff and visitors—we are testing a model that Atlanta and other cities can learn from as they work to build more equitable, connected and opportunity-rich communities.”
Higgs also said ATL Spoke is an example of how businesses, neighborhoods and transit companies can come together to improve community access and connection.
Beltline officials said the organization will continue to evaluate how the autonomous shuttles perform as the expanded testing gets underway.
“Expanding ATL Spoke gives us an opportunity to learn how autonomous transit can serve a broader range of riders and destinations,” Joe Iacobucci, Atlanta Beltline VP of transit innovation, said. “As the pilot continues, we’ll use ridership data and community feedback to understand how this type of service can complement MARTA and other transit options and inform future neighborhood mobility solutions.”
Rides on the ATL Spoke shuttles are free to the public and service operates seven days a week from noon to 10 p.m., with vehicles arriving every 12 to 15 minutes.
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