Red Bull Formula 1 event in Summerhill OK’d by city over MARTA’s objections

Officials with the transit agency told city staff earlier this month that the event would require rerouting buses for days, as well as disrupt active construction along the Rapid A line — a project that’s already months behind schedule.

Residents of the Neighborhood Planning Unit that includes Summerhill voted against the event twice, concerned about the impacts to MARTA and worried they’ll end up with a mess like the “chaos” reported in San Francisco after a similar demonstration was held earlier this year.

“I can see this could be a fun event, but this is not the place that it should be happening,” NPU Chairperson Caitlin Barringer said in an interview.

The man listed on permits as the event organizer, Michael King, declined to answer questions, saying he was not authorized to comment. A city spokesperson did not answer questions asking why permits were approved over the objection of residents and MARTA.

Organizers expect as many as 49,999 people could attend the event, which starts at 4 p.m. Saturday and will give people a close-up look at the open-wheeled, single-seated cars that race in the international competition. Spectators will be held back by barricades along the road.

Credit: Anadolu via Getty Images

Credit: Anadolu via Getty Images

Drivers at the Atlanta demonstration won’t be racing each other but will run up and down Hank Aaron Drive to showcase their skills at up to 75 miles per hour, according to a fact sheet submitted to the city. They’ll do tricks and stunts, including donuts and burnouts, moves that are strictly regulated in actual competition.

At the San Francisco demonstration, one of the cars caught on fire during a series of donuts, according to news reports. The driver was fine, and the fire was quickly extinguished.

Revved up, an F1 car will hit 120 decibels, a little louder than if you were standing by a chain saw. At the end of the show, which is scheduled to wrap at 7 p.m., three cars will be on the course at once.

Organizers have requested that manhole covers be welded shut for safety, because the downforce of F1 vehicles can pull them upward, as was the case last year during a practice session for the Las Vegas Grand Prix. The event permits don’t say whether the covers will be welded in place.

An earlier version of the event was pitched to take place in March on 10th Street along Piedmont Park. The NPU representing that part of town took a vote opposing the event. Then, it was pitched for Summerhill. That NPU voted against it twice, first in March and then again this month after an amended proposal was submitted.

Barringer said residents are bracing for disruption this weekend and frustrated the city approved the permits over the concerns of the NPU and MARTA. She said it was disappointing to see event setup this week before the permits were approved by the city.

MARTA implemented detours on the Rapid A line starting on Wednesday to accommodate the setup, relocating three stops.

The A line, which debuted in April and is the region’s first bus rapid transit, can operate faster than a typical route in part because it has a dedicated bus lane on Hank Aaron Drive, which is freshly repaved as part of the project. But the detours will take it off that path and into mixed traffic, slowing down the route considerably.

The detours will run through Sunday.

Although the A line has been operating since April, crews are still working along Hank Aaron Drive to finish building the bus stations. MARTA Deputy General Manager Rhonda Allen told city officials earlier this month that the cost of rerouting service and pausing the ongoing construction could potentially cost MARTA as much as $123,150.

MARTA spokesperson Stephany Fisher said the agency has requested reimbursement but as of Thursday didn’t know what, if anything, would be covered.

Fisher said any costs not covered by the city or event organizers will be paid from More MARTA, the fund Atlanta voters approved to pay for transit expansion projects like the Rapid A line.

Parking for the event will be “extremely limited,” the event website states. Instead, organizers encourage attendees to use rideshare services or take MARTA.