The Trump administration launched a federal investigation Thursday into the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority. It directed the Federal Transit Administration to audit the agency’s safety protocols, security spending, and overall management after a spate of violent incidents that shook public confidence in the system.
Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy ordered the probe, citing what federal officials described as a troubling pattern of violence on MARTA’s trains and platforms that has outpaced conditions on transit systems elsewhere in the country. The investigation will assess whether systemic failures endanger riders and workers alike.
“Every American should be disturbed by the horrific crimes we have seen on MARTA in the last month,” Duffy said in a statement Thursday. “No one should be forced to fear for their safety simply because they choose to ride public transit.”
The announcement came days after the murder of Margaret Swan, a 66-year-old great-grandmother stabbed 18 to 20 times aboard a northbound MARTA train on May 30 in what prosecutors described as an unprovoked attack. John Elijah Matthews, 25, of Decatur, Georgia, has been charged federally with committing an act of violence using a dangerous weapon on a mass transportation system. He also faces local felony murder charges. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche will decide whether prosecutors will seek the death penalty if Matthews is convicted.
That killing was not isolated. Six days earlier, on May 24, a 40-year-old man was stabbed multiple times after an altercation at a MARTA station. Together, the two attacks in one week crystallized a crisis federal officials say has been building for years.
“From our nation’s capital to Chicago, we’ve made substantial progress in holding systems accountable and enhancing security for transit workers and riders,” Duffy said. “President Trump has made it clear that American families deserve better, and that’s what we are going to deliver in Georgia too.”
At the center of the investigation is a 15-day deadline for MARTA to submit a substantial volume of documents and plans. The FTA’s June 3 letter to MARTA Interim CEO Jonathan Hunt clearly outlined what investigators will scrutinize. The agency must provide detailed action plans and historical data on crime and fare evasion enforcement. It must also include a full breakdown of fiscal year 2026 and 2027 budgeted security and safety spending. This spending disclosure must cover expenditures tied to federal formula grants and safety set-aside requirements under federal law, as well as all safety-directed funding from other federal entities, including the Department of Homeland Security.
FTA investigators will simultaneously assess whether MARTA has been complying with federal regulations governing public transportation agency safety plans and whether the agency adequately responded to prior directives from the FTA.
