CATS shelves plans to expand light rail system to 3-car trains

CHARLOTTE — The News & Record reports that due to a lack of funding, the Charlotte Area Transit System is shelving plans to expand its Lynx Blue Line to three-car trains for eight years, which would have helped ease overcrowding.

Three years ago, CATS started the process to lengthen the old stations so they could handle longer trains. The city spent roughly $17 million lengthening four stations, leaving 11 more stations to be lengthened a few at a time before the Lynx Blue Line extension from uptown to UNC Charlotte opened.

But in a Jan. 9 letter to the federal government, CATS CEO John Lewis said “after a thoughtful review” with its financial consultant, Ernst and Young, it would have to withdraw from the federal program that helped pay for the station extensions. The decision pushes the system’s plan to complete three-car capacity to 2025. For the full story, click here.