CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Charlotte Area Transit System got final approval to build a new light rail line. This one will stretch from Matthews all the way to potentially Gaston County.

  • CATS officials say their goal is to deliver the Silver Line by 2030
  • Two lines already weave through Mecklenburg County
  • The Silver line's price tag would be around $3 billion

But that's not the only mass transit development because the LYNX light rail has its loyalists.

"It helps in terms of traffic, it helps with the value of places that are going to be on that light rail," rider Joe Duty said.

Two lines already weave through Mecklenburg County. The fully constructed Blue Line and center city's Gold Line that is under construction.

"We're now in our third line. So, this is not something that we think will be any more complicated than the other two," Charlotte Area Transit System CEO John Lewis said. “The good news is we have 11 years. The bad news is we have 11 years.”

 

 

Late Wednesday night, the Metropolitan Transit Commission, which oversees CATS, gave unanimous approval to updates to the 2030 transit plan. CATS officials say they plan to build five rail corridors.

"The Silver Line is now one corridor from Matthews to Uptown, west along Wilkinson to the airport," Lewis said.

It could potentially go out to Gaston County. The total length would be 25 miles.

"The next phase to get into is design and engineering where we can start to lay down, where will stations be, how we will connect to the Blue Line," Lewis said.

Dedicated light rail riders like James Mittelstaedt already see the benefits.

"The commute to and from Monroe, I just know it's painful and it takes an extra 30, 45 minutes," he said.

The cost to build the Silver Line could also be painful. Take for instance the Blue Line. It cost $125 per mile. That would mean the Silver Line's price tag would be around $3 billion.

"Those are today's dollars, we're not constructing today. So, we'll add about a 50 percent escalator in that, that's where we get to that $6 billion mark," Lewis said.

A half-cent sales tax helped fund the Blue Line. Taxpayers will now have another big decision to make. In a growing city that experiences periodic growing pains. CATS officials say their goal is to deliver the Silver Line by the original date of 2030.

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