July 30, 2009

Charlotte, NC -- The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) is pleased to announce that the Senate Transportation Appropriations legislation contains $24 million for the next phase of planning, engineering and design of the LYNX Blue Line Extension (BLE). "The BLE will serve a vital role in providing transportation choices for the citizens of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County," said John Muth, Interim Chief Executive Officer of CATS. "We are very thankful for Senator Richard Burr and Senator Kay Hagan's hard work and leadership to keep this project moving forward for the Charlotte region."

The next step will be for the House and Senate committees to work out the final appropriations number to be included in the legislation.

The LYNX Blue Line Extension is proposed to run from Ninth Street in Center City to I-485 in Northeast Mecklenburg County. Fifteen percent of the BLE design and engineering is complete. The Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC) gave CATS approval in April 2009 to continue advancing the project to the 30 percent design level.

To learn more about CATS and rapid transit planning, call 704-336-RIDE (7433) or log on to www.ridetransit.org.