Calls for probe in Beyoncé concert escalator accident at MARTA station
MARTA escalator accident: Calls for probe
An Atlanta City councilwoman is calling for an investigation after nearly a dozen people were hurt when a MARTA escalator malfunctioned after Monday’s Beyonce concert.
ATLANTA - An Atlanta city councilwoman is calling for an investigation after a malfunctioning escalator at the Vine City MARTA station injured at least nine people following Monday night’s Beyoncé concert at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
According to MARTA officials, an escalator at the Vine City station malfunctioned when too many concertgoers attempted to board it at once, causing people to tumble down. The agency says an investigation is underway.
What they're saying:
District 11 Councilwoman Marci Collier Overstreet said the incident raises serious concerns about safety as Atlanta prepares to host major international events, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup and Super Bowl LXIII in 2028.
"It's very alarming," Overstreet said. "And I'm certainly sure that anyone that was experiencing that at the time, they were scared to death, to say the least."
Overstreet is now calling for MARTA leadership to appear before the City Council to explain the incident and detail the agency’s current maintenance protocols.
"To further explain where we are with our maintenance of our escalators, and how the families are doing and how this happened in the first place," she said.
She also plans to recommend MARTA reassess staffing levels at stations during large-scale events to ensure crowd control and safety.
"Making sure that during those kind of important crowd flows, that we have the right personnel in place to control all of that," Overstreet said. "You don't want to be in a place where people are controlling themselves."
The councilwoman emphasized that MARTA plays a crucial role in Atlanta’s future as a global destination and said improvements need to begin now.
"Making sure every single station is inspected. That's what that looks like, exactly," she said.
What's next:
MARTA has not released a timeline for its investigation or announced whether any immediate changes will be made.
The Source: FOX 5's Alexa Liacko spoke with Atlanta City Council District 11 Councilwoman Marci Collier Overstreet for this article. Additional details were provided by the Atlanta Police Department and MARTA. Previous FOX 5 Atlanta reporting was also used.