Charlotte Strategic Mobility Plan: What You Need to Know

Published on August 26, 2024

The City of Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, and the six towns within Mecklenburg County (Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville, Matthews, Mint Hill, Pineville) recently concluded meetings about the region’s mobility initiatives. Those meetings led to the creation of draft legislation, which proposes the establishment of a regional transit authority and a one-cent sales tax increase to fund updated mobility plans.

In anticipation of a potential public vote on the one-cent sales tax increase, we have assembled the following information to help keep Charlotte and Mecklenburg County residents informed.

Why are investments to regional transportation infrastructure significant?

Part of guiding the Charlotte-Mecklenburg region’s continuous growth is managing traffic and congestion by expanding transportation (roads) and public transit (buses and rail). The City of Charlotte has a number of initiatives including the CATS 2030 Transit Plan, the Charlotte 2040 Plan, the Strategic Energy Action Plan, Vision Zero and others that require additional transportation funding to be successful.

A one-cent sales tax would generate more than $19 billion and allow the region to potentially access nearly $6 billion in federal grants and other revenues to create a nearly $25 billion fund for roads, buses and rails. It would be the largest project in the history of North Carolina. Also, 30% of the sales tax would be paid by people who don’t live in Mecklenburg County (commuters and visitors/tourists). 

Explain the purpose of the proposed one-cent sales tax.

A one-cent sales tax is projected to generate $19.4 billion. Another $5.9 billion could come from federal grants and other revenue sources. That $25+ billion would go to building the road infrastructure in Charlotte and the other towns in Mecklenburg County. This would expand the bus system and build out high-capacity transit corridors across Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. Without more revenue, there is not currently a solution to expand transit in our region.

What is the status of the Silver Line? 

There are two parts to the Silver Line. The western portion would go from Uptown Charlotte to the Airport and potentially further west. The eastern portion would go from Uptown Charlotte through East Charlotte to Matthews. The Silver Line East is one of six high-capacity transit corridors in the CATS 2030 Transit Plan (Red Line, Blue Line Extension, Gold Line East, Gold Line West, Silver Line East, Silver Line West) and is projected to be the most expensive project – costing half of the total expected cost of all the projects.

The Silver Line to Matthews has not been eliminated. The Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC) has not cut the project and has not changed the mode. The 2030 Transit System Plan is currently not fiscally constrained and upon confirmation of a potential funding amount, there will be an updated version of the 2030 plan to include fiscal constraints. Development of this plan will be a public process and the plan will go to the MTC for consideration and discussion. The MTC will ultimately decide on alignments and modes. 

What is the status of the Red Line? 

The acquisition of the Red Line is a fundamental part of the 2030 Transit Plan. The Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC) recommended the adoption a commuter rail from Uptown Charlotte to the towns of Huntersville, Cornelius, Davidson and Mooresville in 2002. The City of Charlotte has been pursuing a path forward since receiving the recommendation and has been in active talks with the owner of the railroad, Norfolk Southern, about purchasing the Red Line since 2021.

In July 2023, the City of Charlotte received word that Norfolk Southern was "willing to consider a possible transaction." Charlotte City Council met numerous times from August 2023 through August 2024 in a series of small group meetings and closed sessions to discuss the purchase. On September 3, 2024, City Council will vote to authorize a Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) and Comprehensive Rail Agreement (CRA). The acquisition of the Red Line must be completed by September 9, 2024, if authorized by City Council.

When will the public have an opportunity to weigh in on the mobility discussion? 

The current Transit System Plan for our region, adopted by the CATS policy board, the Metropolitan Transit Commission (MTC), has not been updated to reflect the potential sales tax funding being discussed publicly at this time. However, public engagement is an essential part of the process and is anticipated to begin in winter 2024.

Now that draft legislation including a proposed sales tax has been released, CATS will work to update the Transit System Plan to be within the financial capacity of the proposed sales tax.  It’s important to point out that the current transit plan is not fiscally constrained. Updating the plan is a necessary and expected part of the process.  

Staff will launch this process with the MTC over the next calendar year, and work is anticipated to begin in winter 2024. This will involve a detailed evaluation that will include community forward outreach to gather public input. We intend to proceed in next steps as we would with any updates to the Transit Plan.  CATS will ensure that this process is transparent and inclusive. 

CATS will work with the MTC, stakeholders, and the public through the process to develop a fiscally constrained Transit System Plan for the MTC’s approval.  This updated Transit System Plan will serve as the region’s roadmap as we advance transit. 

What are the next steps in the process? 

Mecklenburg County, the City of Charlotte and six towns (Cornelius, Davidson, Huntersville, Matthews, Mint Hill and Pineville) throughout the county are considering resolutions to support a one-cent sales tax. Should a significant number of those municipalities pass resolutions supporting a one-cent sales tax, draft legislation which has been developed by the county, city and towns will be shared with the North Carolina General Assembly. If the General Assembly passes legislation in order to allow a county-wide referendum on the one-cent sales tax, Mecklenburg County would then put the referendum on the ballot for residents to vote.