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The Metrolina Transit Commission is looking at some new ideas to find money for a 25-mile mass transit rail line from uptown Charlotte to northern Mecklenburg County or Mooresville, according to The Naked City, a blog written by former longtime Observer staffer Mary Newsom.
The commission, which oversees Charlotte Area Transit System, met Wednesday night.
One item of business, Newsom wrote, was a discussion of how to build the Red Line, which will have an estimated cost of $373 million. CATS had planned a commuter rail line but is having trouble finding money to build.
Newsom wrote that CATS also is battling to find funding for the $900 million extension of the Lynx Blue Line, from uptown to north of UNC Charlotte.
According to the blog, a Red Line Task Force subcommittee has come up with an idea that state transportation official Paul Morris says is unique -- use the Charlotte-to-Mooresville line for both passenger and freight rail service. The plan also calls for CATS to join with the towns of Huntersville, Cornelius and Davidson to tax revenues from new development along the line.
The Naked City blog: bit.ly/n2ULxK
