You’ll wait longer for Blue Line trains in rush hours, starting in April. Here’s why.

The Charlotte Area Transit System says it will increase the time between Blue Line trains by 90 seconds during weekday rush hours, beginning in April.

Nearly half of the vehicles in the line’s fleet need extensive overhauls, CATS says. The authority also acknowledges under-estimating the number of trains needed once the extension to UNC Charlotte opened in 2018.

The change in April means that, at peak travel times, trains will arrive every 9 minutes instead of every 7.5 minutes. The longer wait times will apply from 6:30 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. and from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays.

While fewer trains will run in those times, CATS says they will be more reliable. Blue Line riders have complained of 15-minute delays due to maintenance issues in recent days, prompting CATS CEO John Lewis to tweet an apology Friday for “daily delays.”

The 20 light rail vehicles CATS bought in 2005, in advance of the Blue Line’s 2007 opening, are expected to have 30-year service lives. They’re due for extensive mid-life overhauls by the manufacturer, a process that’s expected to take four years.

Because work will be done on nearly half of the total Blue Line fleet of 42, fewer vehicles will be available to run on the line.

CATS says it has also learned that it takes longer than expected for Blue Line trains to travel from Interstate 485, its southern end, to UNC Charlotte on the north side.

Transit officials believed, based on estimates, the ride from end to end would take 57 minutes. But the actual travel time is 63 minutes, requiring more trains than expected. While spare trains were initially able to continue making stops every 7.5 minutes, the overhaul work no longer makes that viable, CATS says.

“In January, for example, mechanical issues resulting in a delay during peak service occurred four times,” CATS spokeswoman Juliann Sheldon said. “By comparison, the Blue Line operates over 6,000 round-trips per month. Delays during peak service certainly feel most impactful, as that’s when ridership is at its highest.”

Blue Line trains still run on schedule 98% of the time, CATS said, compared to an industry average of 88%.

CATS says it’s trying to find money to buy more light rail vehicles but says that it will take more than two years to build and test new vehicles if funding comes through.

This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 10:26 AM.