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The Lynx Silver Line is a proposed east–west
light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...
line in
Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...
. The Silver Line would connect the outlying cities and towns of Belmont, Matthews, Stallings and Indian Trail to
Uptown Charlotte Uptown Charlotte, also called Center City, is the central business district of Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. The area is split into four wards by the intersection of Trade and Tryon Streets, and bordered by Interstate 277 and Int ...
and the
Charlotte Douglas International Airport Charlotte Douglas International Airport is an international airport serving Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, located roughly west of the city's central business district. Charlotte Douglas is the primary airport for commercial and m ...
. In the refined locally preferred alternative (LPA), released in early 2021, the route is estimated to be around , with 29 stations and one maintenance facility. The proposed light rail route was a merger of two earlier projects known as the Southeast Corridor, a proposed light rail line between Uptown Charlotte and CPCC Levine Campus in Matthews, and the West Corridor, a proposed
streetcar A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include s ...
line between Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and Uptown Charlotte.


History


Southeast Corridor

The prospect of developing a light rail line between Matthews and Uptown along Independence Boulevard was initially evaluated in 1985. By 1997, the Charlotte City Council voted, at the recommendation of an independent transit panel, for the development of a busway in the median of Independence in lieu of light rail. The decision to develop a busway over light rail was based on overall costs of $126 million for a busway versus $300 million for light-rail. However, by 1999 delays in the construction of the busway resulted in a renewed grassroots effort of rail advocates to have light rail placed along Independence. As a result of this campaign, Representative Robin Hayes, who served as a member of the House Transportation Committee, to design the busway in such a manner as to be adapted for light rail when it can be economically justified. In 2002, the Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC) recommended that the Independence corridor see the construction, but that as part of the initial engineering studies, light rail accommodation be considered. By 2006, a study released by the
Charlotte Area Transit System The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) is the agency responsible for public transportation in the Charlotte metropolitan area. CATS operates bus and rail transit services in Mecklenburg County and surrounding areas. Established in 1999, CATS' ...
indicated that the cost of light rail along the corridor would be roughly double that of a busway and have fewer riders. The estimates stated light rail on Independence would be in length at a cost of $585 million, with a projected ridership of 14,400 in 2030; and stated a busway would be in length at a cost of $315 to $325 million, with a projected ridership of 16,000 in 2030. In September, the MTC voted to delay on determining whether a busway or light rail should be built along the corridor until 2011. By October 2012, the MTC had voted in favor of a busway on interior lanes of the highway. However, in May 2013, a 30-member funding task force suggested a light rail line instead, at an estimated cost of $1.7 billion. The 2006 study had estimated the line would be and be complete through Idlewild Road by 2022, to Sardis Road North by 2024 and finally to CPCC Levine by 2026. Additionally, the line would contain 3,350 parking spaces and 16 stations along the corridor at a cost of $582 million. In September 2016, after three years of further studies and consultations with area residents, CATS settled on light rail as the most viable option for the Silver Line. At the time, however, CATS lacked any further sources of funding to invest in future projects. John Lewis, the system's CEO, said he would wait for the Blue Line Extension to begin service in August 2017 before resuming discussions on how best to fund the new lines. A possible option could be to have neighboring counties contribute towards project costs. The Silver Line would come within less than a mile of the Union County border at the CPCC Levine Station. Lynx Silver Line will have 13 stations with about 10 having park-and-ride lots. In January 2019, CATS announced that the Silver Line would cross from Independence Boulevard over to 11th Street, run parallel to I-277 to North Graham Street, then turn south to link to the planned Gateway Station and continuation along the West Corridor.


West Corridor

The West Corridor was proposed as a
streetcar A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include s ...
line to serve as an extension for the LYNX network in
Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...
, initially slated for completion by 2034. It would connect Charlotte-Douglas International Airport in west Charlotte with the
Charlotte Transportation Center __NOTOC__ The Charlotte Transportation Center (CTC), also known as Arena or CTC/Arena, is an intermodal transit station in Center City Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It serves as the central hub for the Charlotte Area Transit Syste ...
in
Uptown Charlotte Uptown Charlotte, also called Center City, is the central business district of Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. The area is split into four wards by the intersection of Trade and Tryon Streets, and bordered by Interstate 277 and Int ...
. It was to follow a primarily east–west path along West Morehead Street and Wilkinson Boulevard, through west Charlotte. The first phase was estimated to be with 10 stops. It was to be completed between Uptown and Ashley Road by 2029 at a cost of $163 million. The second phase between Ashley Road and the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport was scheduled for completion by 2034 at a cost of $324 million. In July 2018, CATS began a reevaluation of the West Corridor, which replaces the originally planned streetcar into two possible light rail routes from Belmont and
Charlotte Douglas International Airport Charlotte Douglas International Airport is an international airport serving Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, located roughly west of the city's central business district. Charlotte Douglas is the primary airport for commercial and m ...
to Charlotte Center City and continuation along the planned Southeast Corridor to Matthews. The process involves a series of public meetings and various surveys to know where the public stands regarding the West Corridor and how each of the alternative options rank. In January 2019, CATS reaffirmed that the West Corridor would be a continuation of the Lynx Silver Line, from the planned Gateway Station, in Uptown, to Belmont. It was also confirmed that the route would travel along Wilkinson Boulevard, dropping the alternative routing along Alleghany and Tuckaseegee roads. On February 27, 2019, the MTC unanimously approved to merge the West Corridor into the Lynx Silver Line.


Refined locally preferred alternative

In early 2021, CATS released the refined locally preferred alternative (LPA) for the Silver line, accompanied with a series videos and a website showing what they considered and why they choose the routing and stations identified. The revised roughly alignment included 29 stations and one maintenance facility along it, from Belmont to its new eastern terminus in Indian Trail. The following is a breakdown of the refinement, broken into six focus areas, all of which is subject to change: # In
Gaston County Gaston County is a county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 227,943. The county seat is Gastonia. Dallas served as the original county seat from 1846 until 1911. Gaston County is included in the ...
, the Belmont station will be situated in front of the
Lowe's Lowe's Companies, Inc. ( ) is an American retail company specializing in home improvement. Headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina, the company operates a chain of retail stores in the United States. As of October 28, 2022, Lowe's and i ...
/ Super Walmart, paralleling north along Wilkinson Boulevard, with bridges over Hawley Avenue and Park Street. Crossing the
Catawba River The Catawba River is a major river located in the Southeastern United States. It originates in Western North Carolina and flows into South Carolina, where it later becomes known as the Wateree River. The river is approximately 220 miles (350&nbs ...
, on a separate bridge north of Sloans Ferry Bridge, into Mecklenburg County where it will flyover Wilkinson Boulevard to its south side, at Moores Chapel Loop, and then crosses over Old Dowd Road. Sam Wilson station will be located east of Sam Wilson Road, followed by a second flyover along Wilkinson Boulevard, at Perimeter West Drive, to its north side before crossing I-485. # At I-485 station, east of Todd Road, it continues its parallel north of Wilkinson Boulevard to Airport station, where a future
people mover A people mover or automated people mover (APM) is a type of small-scale automated guideway transit system. The term is generally used only to describe systems serving relatively small areas such as airports, downtown districts or theme parks ...
will connect passengers to Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Crossing under Little Rock Road, it continues to Stafford station, east of Stafford Drive. Crossing over Billy Graham Parkway, it then does a third flyover of Wilkinson Boulevard, at Mulberry Church Road, where it begins a new parallel alignment next to
Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...
right-of-way, with stations at or near Morris Field Drive, Ashley Road, Remount Road and Suttle Avenue. # In Uptown, the alignment continues along the Norfolk Southern right-of-way, with stations at Morehead Street and Charlotte Gateway Station. With a station at Graham Street, it then turns to parallel south of Brookshire Freeway, with a connection at 11th Street/Blue Line before moving over onto north alignment along Independence Expressway/Boulevard with a station at Central Avenue. # Continuing along Independence Boulevard, with stations at Pecan Avenue and Morningside Drive, it then crosses along Briar Creek Road to a station at Bojangles Coliseum. Then continuing along a southern parallel of Independence Boulevard, with stations at Amity Gardens and Sharon Amity. # Continuing along Independence Boulevard, with a station at Conference Drive, before turning along a future right-of-way alignment of Sharon Forest Drive and crossing over Wallace Drive. With a station at Village Lake, it then crosses over Monroe Road to parallel it on its western side, with a connection at McAlpine. Continuing along Monroe Road, it eventually does a flyover onto its eastern side with stations at Galleria and Matthews Township Parkway. Going under Matthews Township Parkway, it then routes through downtown Matthews, with station, and then following along Matthews-Mint Hill Road to the Sportsplex at Matthews, with station, before crossing I-485 to CPCC Levine, with station. # This focus area is a new addition, directed by the MTA, since the 2019. Following CPCC Lane back to a southern parallel alignment with Independence Boulevard, it crosses into Union County. At Stallings Road, there will be a station and park-and-ride. Where Independence Boulevard splits with the Monroe Bypass, it will also diverge west to an eastern parallel of Matthews-Indian Trail Road, where it will end at a station near Indian Trail Town Hall and Chestnut Square Park. On April 28, 2021, the MTC adopted the locally preferred alternative. One noticeable change from the refined locally preferred alternative was station placement at Boyer Street instead of Stafford Drive; however station area planning and public engagement was still ongoing through the Summer of 2021, with a final Silver Line TOD Plan to be submitted in December 2021. On January 26, 2022, the MTC approved several changes including new stations and alignment adjustments. This includes replacing Suttle Avenue with Berryhill Road, and adding stations at Summit Avenue and First Ward. Also CATS have suggested implementing the line be built in three phases: A) East from Charlotte Gateway Center to CPCC Levine, B) West from Charlotte Gateway Center to I-485, C) Sections that enter another county that require regional funding.


References


External links


Silver Line - Charlotte Area Transit System
{{Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte Area Transit System Proposed railway lines in the United States 2037 in rail transport