MARTA selects interim CEO to fill role permanently

After narrowing down to three finalists, officials recently announced that Jonathan Hunt, who has served as interim CEO of Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) since 2025, was selected to head the transit system.

“Over the past year, Jonathan has demonstrated strong leadership and adept decision-making, guiding MARTA through its largest and most complex periods of improvement in its history. At the same time, he has strengthened stakeholder relationships, improved public and employee engagement, and ensured the customer is always front and center. My fellow board members and I are thrilled to name him as permanent general manager and CEO,” said MARTA Board of Directors Chair Jennifer N. Ide.

Those “complex periods” have included the stabbing murder of 66-year-old MARTA passenger Margaret Swan in June aboard a train and a subsequent Federal Transit Administration safety audit announced by U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

Under Hunt, the transit system also completed an overhaul of new faregates and payment systems as well as the launch of a newly designed bus route system as millions of visitors for the 2026 FIFA World Cup used MARTA over the summer.

“I am honored by this decision and look forward to continuing the important work of improving MARTA service, increasing ridership, and expanding the transit system,” said Hunt. “Though my title is changing, my mission will remain the same: deliver routine excellence every day by creating a safe, clean, and reliable transit system that we can all be extremely proud of. I firmly believe MARTA’s best and brightest days are ahead of us, and I am humbled, honored, and excited to get to work.”

Hunt joined MARTA in 2014 and spent more than a decade in the authority’s legal department. He served as MARTA’s chief legal counsel before being named interim CEO last year, after former CEO Collie Greenwood took “early retirement out of an abundance of caution” due to expiration of his United States work permit.

According to officials, MARTA’s GM/CEO leads an executive team spanning operations and urban planning, finance, administration, capital programs, safety and quality assurance, legal, and customer experience and reports to the MARTA board of directors.

For more information, visit itsmarta.com.