We recently sat down with Atlanta-born entrepreneur Bem Joiner to discuss how his upbringing and business have shaped how he sees and gets around the city.
GCO: In a few sentences, who is Bem Joiner?
Bem: I’m a native Atlantan, aka ATLien, product of the Atlanta Public School system, and the father of a daughter and son. As the co-founder of Atlanta Influences Everything, I’m an ambassador for all things Atlanta. I also identify as a member of the working class in the creative industries with a skillset in creative strategy — or, a creative culture curator.
GCO: What is a culture curator? What exactly do you do?
Bem: It might sound kind of like a “snake-oil salesman,” but I actually do connect dots for a living. I assist in implementing creative solutions to delivery gaps in civic and corporate spaces. I also work with civic leaders and policy makers to develop infrastructure that better supports Atlanta’s creative class in hopes of unlocking its social capital and using it to create workforce and economic development opportunities.
GCO: What inspired your collaboration with Georgia Commute Options?
Bem: My collaboration with Georgia Commute Options was really inspired by my friend Sheryl Merritt who works with the Atlanta Regional Commission. She noticed that I was maneuvering easily around Atlanta without a car but was also a small business owner who could benefit from the incentives through the MyGCO app. Once I got an understanding of the app and how to navigate it, it was the perfect opportunity to collaborate with GCO.
GCO: In one of your videos, you mentioned your history growing up in ATL and the evolution of transportation options. Can you tell us a little more about your personal experience with that?
Bem: MARTA buses launched in the early 1970s, several years before I was born. I grew up in the West End, about three blocks from the West End Marta Station, so I was raised to get around Atlanta without a car. I also was a part of a special program that allowed me to go to school outside of my neighborhood and that program landed me in Buckhead. Back then, you couldn’t just hail a ride. So if taking MARTA wasn’t an option, you had to get a ride from family and friends. This all changed around 2012 when Uber was launched in Atlanta, Lyft about a year later, and the proliferation of e-scooters and e-bikes coming around 2015.
GCO: Why is the ATL culture and lifestyle a natural fit with GCO?
Bem: What’s funny is I like to refer to Donald Glover’s “Atlanta” show as an example of what the full experience of the city’s culture is like. Driving in Atlanta won’t give you as much insight into how the city moves/feels as much as catching MARTA, walking, biking, or riding an e-scooter. Using these different modes of transportation allows you to connect with old and new Atlanta as well as get a feel for the good, bad, and ugly of the city.
In a city plagued by traffic snarls, having alternative commute options is a great way to get around and earn rewards.
GCO: You use a variety of ways to get around Atlanta. Let’s play a game. I’ll say a transportation mode and you tell us your favorite place to go using it and why.
GCO: Scooter.
Bem: I enjoy riding it downtown because of how dense the area is and the randomness of people at certain times of the day.
GCO: E-bike.
Bem: I enjoy riding it on the Beltline because I can ride in a relaxed manner for long distances while getting to enjoy the many neighborhoods and people-watching along the way.
GCO: Last one — transit.
Bem: I enjoy riding MARTA to Five Points Station because it’s the closest feeling to the density of Grand Central Station in New York and it’s great for people-watching. I also like riding to and from the Airport Station because you get to witness random people leaving and arriving in the city.
GCO: I heard you finally got a car in 2021 at the age of 40. Is that true? What prompted that decision?
It’s true that I hadn’t had a car since I graduated from Jackson State University in ‘02. Post-college, I came back home to live with my mom in the West End, so it was easy to go back to how I normally traversed Atlanta.
As I started to find life in and around Atlanta, I mostly stayed inside the perimeter, so it was pretty easy to navigate without a car. I also chose to work in the creative industries in a city that didn’t — and still doesn’t — have enough infrastructure and policy in place to support my particular type of career/discipline. I’ve had to “get it how ya live it,” as the saying goes.
In order for me to pursue my dream, I’ve had to basically maneuver Atlanta like it was just as densely populated as New York City. I always had roommates (most of whom owned cars) as well as tried my best to live near a train station or bus line.
For a number of years, having a car was just another expense that I just didn’t need. It was just perfect timing that my mom was in the market for a new car and gave me her old 2003 Toyota Highlander with no note.
GCO: Why do you prefer to get around the city outside the car? What are people missing out on when they’re cocooned?
I wouldn’t necessarily say I prefer it. To be honest, getting around Atlanta in an efficient and timely manner requires a balance of both the car and alternative forms of transportation.
While we are not dense enough as a region to rely fully on alternative transportation alone, it will give you a great understanding of where Atlanta has been and the people and places that are leading where Atlanta is going.
GCO: Why should people sign up for the MyGCO app?
People should sign up for the MyGCO app because it actually incentivizes you to be smart with your time. The app is a great way to do trip planning, which helps free up space on our roads for essential vehicles like buses and ambulances.
Another great thing about the MyGCO app is that it shows how your clean trips help decrease your carbon footprint and it rewards you for that as well!
GCO: Any last words?
I’m grateful to be a part of MyGCO. It has helped me learn more about my daily travel habits and I look forward to using even more when I get an e-bike!
Georgia Commute Options — a program made possible by the Atlanta Regional Commission and Georgia Department of Transportation — works with businesses, property managers, CIDs and local transportation management associations to develop and implement commute programs and services that reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality across the region.