A 29 mile, East -West light-rail line through Charlotte and into Gaston County appears to be stalled, at least for the time being.
Since early 2021, the overall plan for transit and transportation expansion has been mostly idle. At issue is agreement on the scope and installation of the plan by involved parties, and funding. When the plan was announced in 2020, it was expected by the Charlotte City Council that a penny increase in sales tax would pay 60% of the project cost, and the rest would come from uncommitted federal grants.
But North Carolina Republican leaders are cool to the idea of letting Mecklenburg County raise sales taxes to support bike lanes, busses, or rail. They want to focus on roads instead.
