Comparing Bus Fares to Minimum Wage

"A comparison between Georgia’s minimum wage and MARTA’s transit fare makes Atlanta’s transit system one of the nation’s most expensive," reports Ana Santos.

"Data from the Atlanta Regional Commission and Neighborhood Nexus shows that a worker making minimum wage would have to work a total of 41 minutes to make up for the cost of transportation in Atlanta," adds Santos to explain that conclusion.

According to the analysis of bus fares (i.e., not rail transit fares), Atlanta's affordability matches with DART, in Dallas, and UTA, in Salt Lake City, as the most expensive transit fares in the country. At the other end of the spectrum is Washington, D.C., which requires 20 minutes of work to cover the cost of a bus ticket.