CHARLOTTE — Construction is temporarily closing walkways and train platforms along the Blue Line in Charlotte’s South End, but improvements are coming to give people an easier way to get across the tracks and more transportation access.
If you’ve ever walked the section of the Rail Trail south of Tremont Avenue, you know you aren’t crossing the tracks for quite some time. But construction crews are about to change that, and a new stop is in the works, too.
Channel 9’s Hunter Sáenz caught up with people living and working in South End about the changes.
“It’ll save us a ton of frustration,” said Chris Miller, who works in South End and uses the light rail often.
In the stretch, there’s no light rail stop and the rail trail isn’t complete on one side. There’s also no pedestrian crossing.
“I have seen many people do very unwise and illegal actions such as walking right across the tracks, hopping the fence,” Miller told Sáenz.
It’s a problem that Charlotte Area Transit System Spokesperson Brett Baldeck says they know about and want to solve.
“This is definitely something that we’ve been talking about for a long time, something that people have wanted for a long time,” Baldeck said.
Through Friday, the Blue Line will operate on one track in both directions between the New Bern and Bland Street stations. It’s one part of several phases.
CATS is building a split Blue Line stop -- one side will let passengers off near Publix, the other will let people out in front of Linea South End apartments, with a pedestrian crossing between them.
“Adding this station will allow people to get off right there and go to the grocery store and hop back on and go wherever they need to go,” Baldeck said.
It’s another perk that Miller can’t wait to see as this area continues to grow.
“Man, that’s going to be a huge deal,” Miller said.
For this week, CATS says you can expect possible delays on the Blue Line, but you can check their app for updated arrival times.
The plan is to have the pedestrian crossing done by the end of the summer, and then the stop will be built off and on through next year.