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CATS announces week of free fare starting on October 6 and public engagement process for an updated transit plan

Andre MTC_091724

This week, the Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC) held their September meeting. They discussed the pros and cons of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and received an update on the Transit System Plan process among other topics. Couldn’t make the meeting? Here’s a recap! 

Key takeaways

  • One of our summer interns, Andre Phillips, spoke directly to MTC about the stories of local bus riders that he gathered this summer. Check out his remarks at 0:10:25 in the meeting recording.
  • “Trying Transit Week” starts on October 6 – and all transit will be free! Take advantage of this perk by hopping on a bus or light rail.
  • BRT can be “whatever you want it to be.” If it comes to Charlotte, we want it to be the gold standard.
  • CATS staff intend to conduct public engagement for an updated transit plan with the help of a firm with extensive local experience and community relationships.

CATS Interim CEO Update

As usual, the meeting kicked off with interim CATS CEO Brent Cagle’s monthly update. He announced the continuation of Red Line commuter rail public meetings and a $1M grant from the Build America Bureau to look into innovative financing options for Charlotte’s Gateway Station.

Cagle also shared that CATS will be launching their “Trying Transit Week” on Sunday, October 6. During this week, transit will be free for everyone! It is also the same week that paratransit service in Mint Hill will begin. This is a fabulous opportunity to try the bus or light rail without having to worry about buying and activating tickets, especially if you haven’t used our transit services before.

MTC Chair Altman asked how the light rail truck overhaul process, started last year, is progressing. Cagle assured members that all trucks will undergo maintenance in Florida and California and re-enter service upon return. He did not have a timeline for when all the repairs would be complete, but said he would look into it.

The CATS report ended with a lengthy discussion about the dissolution of the Transit Services Advisory Committee (TSAC) and Citizens Transit Advisory Group (CTAG). According to the recent amended interlocal agreement, a new advisory group should be stood up by January 1, 2025. The chairs of TSAC and CTAG expressed concerns, and Chair Altman assured the advisory group chairs that the conversation will continue over the next month so a potential amendment could be brought forward that satisfies everyone.

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Presentation

Two transit professionals joined the meeting to give a brief presentation on Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). They started by emphasizing that BRT can be “whatever you want it to be”, indicating its flexibility and range of quality. Since the early 2000s, there has been exponential growth in federal funding requests for BRT. In 2023 alone, there were 37 requests – more than any other transit project type.

BRT offers a host of benefits, from dedicated lanes to transit signal priority (not having to stop at lights and intersections) and enhanced stations. The presenters walked MTC members through several examples of BRT in the United States, namely Cleveland’s HealthLine, Miami-Dade’s upcoming system, and Indianapolis’ IndyGo. Each has experienced some level of economic development along the BRT corridor, and importantly, each was designed around institutional anchors like existing universities and hospitals to show developers that BRT will be a permanent, reliable transit option.

Matthews’ Mayor Higdon cut to the chase and pointed out that no “gold standard” BRT currently exists in North America, and the Charlotte area would be unlikely to provide high quality BRT for many reasons, including several 90 degree turns in our road network in East Charlotte. The presenters acknowledged that the rating system for BRT skews international, with the “gold” ratings existing in places like Asia and South America where ridership each day can reach the hundreds of thousands. They also noted that many of the BRT systems in the United States have been in operation for only a few years and therefore are not eligible for a rating yet.

MTC members were assured that BRT is spreading to large cities with well-established transit system including rail, and new ideas on how to best design BRT are constantly appearing. A lot more thought will need to go into a decision about BRT in the Charlotte area, but we for one aren’t discounting it yet. 

Transit System Plan Update Process

It’s long been known that the current half-cent sales tax for transit isn’t sufficient to build out CATS’ 2030 Transit Plan. Not only is 2030 just six years away, but also the proposed legislation that would allow Mecklenburg County residents to vote on a new sales tax would allow no more than 40% of that funding to go towards rail, and up to 20% for bus. That combined 60% of revenues for transit is not enough revenue to fully build out the adopted plan.

Now that Charlotte City Council has authorized the purchase of the rail line necessary to build the Red Line and seven elected bodies within Mecklenburg County have passed resolutions in support of advancing sales tax legislation, a refresh of the transit plan is needed. 

CATS proposes an open and transparent process to create a realistic and implementable plan. The new plan will be fiscally constrained and will include an implementation schedule. As a starting point, it will include an evaluation of the existing 2030 Transit Plan, the Better Bus initiative, and Envision My Ride. 

A 3-step approach includes:

  1. Confirming goals & establishing base assumptions (Fall 2024)
  2. Developing & evaluating alternative scenarios (Winter/Spring 2025)
  3. Creating an implementation schedule & financial plan (Late Spring 2025)

Public engagement will happen in coordination with each step. CATS staff clarified that a public engagement firm with extensive local experience and community relationships will coordinate that process. The MTC will then be asked to adopt the recommended plan. 

Town of Matthews Mayor Higdon asked if the consultant providing financial modeling for the MTC could run a few quick scenarios including the possibility of a 45% roads, 45% rail, 10% bus funding split. Interim CATS CEO Cagle responded that 10% would likely be insufficient to meet bus system needs. Even if 45% of new sales tax revenues went to rail instead of 40%, it still might not be enough to build a “minimum operating segment”, which is the shortest segment of rail that would be eligible for federal funding. A shortened segment may also not meet the mobility needs of riders. 

Higdon clarified that Matthews has “no interest whatsoever in BRT” because he doesn’t believe it would be built to a gold standard, and instead would be a lower quality system with buses stuck in mixed traffic. Instead, Matthews wants light rail or the promise of light rail. We share Higdon’s concerns that if BRT wasn’t built to a gold standard (offboard fares, dedicated lanes, quality stations, transit signal priority), then it wouldn’t provide the same mobility benefits that light rail would. 

MTC Chair Altman said that MTC delegates should be able to submit alternative scenarios for modeling “as soon as is practicable.” She expressed concern for reducing bus funding from 20% to 10% because buses currently serve about 60% of CATS riders and are an important tool for equitable mobility because they can reach locations that will never be reached by light rail. 

You can watch the meeting recording here and view the agenda here.

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