The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) has seen major efficiency improvements from its deployment of the Bentley Optram decision-support system for rail corridor maintenance planning and operations. To date, Bentley Optram has enabled MARTA to reduce by more than 70 percent the time it spends analyzing automated track geometry and exceptions and verifying track exceptions or defects.

MARTA's Track and Structures division began relying on the Bentley Optram solution for rail condition analysis and planning last year. The system interoperates directly with MARTA's Maximus enterprise asset management system to automatically generate work orders and capture progress, history, and cost information for reuse in future decision making. With the ability to practice proactive maintenance, MARTA Track and Structures division foresees dramatic reductions in maintenance and renewal costs as well as track defects.

Bentley Optram was put into place as part of Phase I of MARTA's Business Transformation Program (BTP), launched in October 2006. The BTP, which encompasses a reengineering of business processes and operations, along with the replacement of multiple legacy information technology systems, is slated for completion in 2008.