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MARTA carried 1.7 million extra World Cup riders without a major incident

Rail ridership hit 4.7-4.8 million trips since the tournament opened, peaking at 240,000 trips on match day for Morocco vs. Haiti.

AI editorial concept showing crowded elevated rail platforms, several trains, Atlanta’s skyline, and passengers carrying soccer balls in a layered illustrated collage.AI IMAGE — NOT AN ACTUAL PHOTO OR PROJECT RENDERING

Published Aug 13, 2026

MARTA says it carried roughly 1.7 million additional rail trips tied directly to World Cup matches since the tournament began June 11, pushing total rail ridership over that span to about 4.7 to 4.8 million trips, close to 2 million above the system's normal volume.

Match days drove system usage up to three and a half times normal daily volume, with the single busiest day, the Morocco-Haiti match on June 24, drawing about 240,000 rail trips. Hundreds of transit ambassadors and police officers worked the crowds, and MARTA reported no major crimes tied to the surge.

LocationMARTA rail system
Scale~1.7M extra trips; ~4.7-4.8M total since June 11
TimelineWorld Cup tournament, summer 2026
WhoMARTA
LinksMARTA
Sources and documents3 sources
↗ atlanta.urbanize.city↗ The Atlanta Journal-Constitution↗ MARTA

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