A race to ride every MARTA station: Team targets Guinness World Record in Atlanta
Atlanta is no stranger to the Guinness World Records book.
The city is home to a wide range of record-setting achievements — from large-scale icons like the world's busiest airport and Coca-Cola's massive soda float, to cultural and individual feats including Lil Jon's oversized diamond pendant, the longest freestanding escalator at CNN Center, and recent endurance challenges led by the nonprofit MOST (Men Opposing Sex Trafficking), which staged marathon-length basketball and kickball games to raise awareness and funds.
Now, a new Guinness World Record attempt is targeting something distinctly Atlanta: MARTA.
Three transit enthusiasts are setting their sights on Atlanta's MARTA system next month, aiming to visit every rail station in record time in what they hope will become a Guinness World Record–certified achievement.
The attempt is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 8, with a 3 p.m. start at North Springs Station and a planned finish at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
The team's goal: complete the entire system in under three hours, a benchmark they say would set a high bar for future challengers.
The group — Joab Barbosa, Omar Yusuf, and Matthew Plese— previously completed a similar record-setting challenge on Chicago's transit system.
Atlanta, they say, presented an opportunity because no Guinness World Record currently exists for MARTA.
How the record attempt works
Guinness World Records has strict verification rules, and the team says they are structuring every part of the attempt to comply.
According to the group:
- The entire journey will be captured on continuous video
- A logbook will document arrival times at every station
- Photographic evidence will be taken at each stop
- At least two independent witnesses — not affiliated with the team — will time the start and finish using stopwatches
- Additional witnesses along the route will sign logs to corroborate station visits
"The evidence requirements are extensive," said Matthew, who is responsible for maintaining the official logbook. "If someone gets a Guinness World Record, they really earned it."
Omar Yusuf will handle filming and photography, while Barbosa — described by the team as the route strategist — planned the logistics of navigating MARTA's lines efficiently.
The planned route
The team says the strategy is to move north to downtown, branch out west and east, then finish at the airport — minimizing backtracking and relying almost entirely on trains rather than running between stations.
In Chicago, the group incorporated running segments. In Atlanta, the greater distances between stations mean the challenge will be largely rail-based.
"Our goal is to do this cleanly and efficiently," Barbosa said. "And to set a record that's difficult to beat."
More than a record
While the Guinness title is the objective, the group says the mission is also about public transit awareness — especially in a city known for car traffic and congestion.
"People don't always realize how accessible public transit can be," Matthew said. "A lot of people don't use it simply because they don't know how."
Omar Yusuf, whose family lives in metro Atlanta, said attempting the record in the city has personal meaning.
"It's my hometown in a way," he said. "If this helps even a few people think differently about MARTA, that matters."
The team hopes the visibility of the attempt — including possible live coverage — will encourage more Atlantans to consider using transit as a viable alternative to driving.
What happens next
The attempt will begin Jan. 8 at 3 p.m. at North Springs Station, with the finish expected near the airport around early evening. Guinness World Records certification typically takes weeks or months after all evidence is reviewed.
Until then, the result will remain an attempt, not an official record — a distinction Guinness guidelines require media outlets to maintain.
Still, the team says they're ready.
"We're excited," Barbosa said. "Atlanta deserves a record."