A maiden voyage and broader launch are officially set for what MARTA is calling the most technologically advanced trains in the U.S. 

MARTA is scheduled to host a symbolic “first ride” ceremony Thursday morning at Avondale Station for government officials, media, and project leaders to feature its new cutting-edge CQ400 railcars. 

Following a program, MARTA’s plans call for one train to make a roundtrip with invited passengers between Avondale and Georgia State stations—mimicking the route used for MARTA’s famous, inaugural train ride back in 1979. 

After ceremonies conclude, MARTA officials say “several” new trains will officially launch revenue service for the general public later on Thursday. (The day has come!)  

The CQ400 trains built by Switzerland-based Stadler have been undergoing testing in Atlanta since early 2025, and several earlier timelines for the trains’ introduction on the city’s railways came and went. 

Courtesy of MARTA

The “first ride” news from MARTA comes as the AJC published an investigation this week indicating critical safety tests on the CQ400 fleet had not been completed by Stadler with just weeks to go before 2026 FIFA World Cup—and that the supposed rosy relationship between the transit agency and Stadler has been fraught with tensions behind the scenes. Jonathan Hunt, MARTA’s interim general manager and CEO, told the news outlet he has refused to put new trains in service until they’re 100-percent tested and safe, even if it means the launch would come after the World Cup’s global exposure. 

The CQ400 railcars will be the first models of their kind to operate in the U.S. The full fleet in Atlanta will be phased in—a process expected to take several years, officials have said. A total of 56 new train sets are bound for Atlanta’s rails. 

MARTA entered a contract in 2019 to purchase $646 million worth of modernized new railcars from Stadler—funded via MARTA’s capital improvement program—marking the largest procurement deal ever for both the veteran train builder and transit agency.

MARTA had previously said the first CQ400 railcar would be in operation on tracks around Atlanta in July 2025, but that didn’t happen. A headline-grabbing unveiling was held near MARTA headquarters at Lindbergh Center station in January last year. 

Inside the open-gangway new test train in action recently. via MARTA (@MARTAtransit)/Hardman Creative

Beyond cutting-edge aesthetics, the new CQ400 trains will have a number of functionality upgrades. Each will be a four-car set with open gangways in between, allowing MARTA riders to pass between more than one car at once. That will make inter-car movement for passengers and security staff easier, per the agency. 

Also inside the trains, charging stations, digital maps, computerized service information, and forward and inward-facing seats will be included. One goal is to provide more room for bikes, strollers, luggage, and people in wheelchairs, MARTA officials have said.  

The front exterior of each railcar will have a lighted “smile” in either red, gold, blue, or green that denotes the color of each approaching rail line, according to MARTA. 

Some of MARTA’s current 300 railcars date back to the system’s debut in the 1970s. 

A juxtaposition of MARTA's first CQ400 train to be operational on tracks (left) and a current railcar. Courtesy of MARTA

Inside the more open and digitized new CQ400 trains bound for MARTA's system. Courtesy of MARTA

Stadler announced in June it was planting a permanent flag in Atlanta.  

The first major international expansion of the company’s Stadler Signalling Division has leased more than 7,000 square feet of office space in Uptown Atlanta, the retooled mixed-use hub formerly called Lindbergh. That includes laboratory space and a hub for Stadler’s growing US team with space for future expansion, all steps from MARTA’s Lindbergh Center station.  

Stadler’s signaling division provides custom and digital signaling solutions—systems that control railway vehicles and prevent collisions—for mainline railways, metro systems, branch lines, and depots. 

MARTA awarded Stadler another $500 million contract in 2024 to replace its former signaling system with a more tech-driven one that’s communications-based. 

Stadler officials called the second MARTA deal a driving factor in the company’s decision to plant roots in Atlanta at Uptown, near MARTA’s headquarters. 

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• Images: How upgrades for MARTA’s easternmost station turned out (Urbanize Atlanta)