Gold Line public meetings kick off Tuesday night

Sydney Heiberger
·2 min read
Gold Line public meetings kick off Tuesday night

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) will hold its first of three community meetings on Tuesday, April 23, to inform people about the design of the next phase of the Gold Line expansion.

Phase three of the Gold Line project would extend the line by six miles. Following the expansion, the line would start at the Rosa Parks Community Transit Center and end at the Eastland Community Transit Center, adding up to 17 additional stations.

CATS leaders also said the expansion would include the installation of public art at streetcar stops in the east and west corridors.

A CATS spokesman told Queen City News that the department can only estimate cost or construction timeline once the design phase is complete in 2026.

CATS increasing frequency for Gold Line riders

On April 1, CATS Interim CEO Brent Cagle told city council members that overall ridership was up 18 percent from fiscal year 2023. The only service that did not see an increase was the Gold Line.

Councilman Ed Driggs, a Charlotte Transportation, Planning, and Development Committee member, said he expects numbers to bounce back now that CATS has increased Gold Line frequency to every 20 minutes rather than every 30 minutes.

“They had been lengthened because of personnel shortage issues, which are now being addressed. The vacancies are down by half, I understand, and we’ve made very good progress in that area, which is one of the ones we identified as requiring our attention,” said Driggs.

CATS cites concerns over county funding commitment for new Uptown center

Tuesday’s public meeting will be at the Northwest School of the Arts on Beatties Ford Road from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. They’ll conduct another meeting on Thursday at the indoor pavilion at Veteran’s Park on Central Avenue from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

CATS will host a virtual meeting on their YouTube page at 6 p.m. on April 30 for those who can’t attend either meeting in person.

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