Charlotte City Council Will Vote on Future of Red Line Project
Charlotte City Council will soon vote on the future of a project that has been more than 20 years in the making.
City council has been talking about the Red Line that would connect Uptown to Lake Norman for more than 20 years. In 1998, the city approved a transit tax, but officials still didn’t have the money to cover the full project. Now council will consider asking the state legislature for permission to add a ballot measure to allow Mecklenburg County voters to decide whether they want to pay a one cent sales tax for transit projects.
“This is our opportunity because the opportunity is built on a solid foundation for the continued progress of a growing city,” Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said.
Charlotte City Council plans to vote on whether to spend $92 million dollars to buy train lines and land from Norfolk Southern to lay the groundwork for the Red Line.
“The Red Line presents an opportunity for us to move forward with a project that has been part of the plan for decades,” Brent Cagle, interim CATS CEO said. “It also gives us the opportunity to have meaningful conversations about funding the entire transit plan.”
Council will vote on whether to ask the state for permission to add a one cent sales tax to the ballot by November of 2025. The revenue source will pay for roads, rails and buses, but the idea of raising taxes has some council members concerned.
“Is this the time to be raising taxes,” Councilman Tariq Bokhari asked. “It’s on the back on the fact that our economy is struggling and we wake up and hear about employers laying people off and the fact that we just raised taxes in the budget.”
Some council members raised concerns about building transportation with equity in mind.
“Are we creating two cities where one part has access to more efficient and effective transportation and one part does not,” Councilwoman Dimple Ajmera said.
Council must close the deal with Norfolk Southern to buy the rails by September 9th. All council members agree transit needs work.
“There’s no question that we need to make a large investment in mobility and infrastructure you can see it out on the roads you can hear it,” Councilman Ed Driggs said. “Understand, it’s going to be a few years if we move in this direction before the improvements start coming online. It’s urgent we need to be doing something now.”
The Silver Line was originally included in the 2030 Transit Plan. City officials plan to solicit public feedback on ways to expand transit out east when they secure a funding source for transit. City Council is scheduled to vote on the one cent sales tax proposal and the acquisition of the train line on September 3rd.
