Woman injured after walking into CATS train in South End on Thursday
A woman walked into the side of a moving CATS light rail train and was injured in South End on Thursday evening, according to the transit agency.
According to statements obtained by Observer news partner WSOC-TV, the individual was treated for minor injuries and was transported to a local hospital.
The Charlotte Fire Department and MEDIC responded to the scene and transported the woman.
On Thursday and earlier Friday, it was not clear exactly what happened. A CATS spokeswoman clarified that on Friday afternoon.
The safety arms at the crossing were down, the horns were blaring and the operator did nothing wrong, said Catherine Kummer, a spokeswoman for CATS.
It is rare for the light rail to strike people. CATS reported 20 such collisions, or less than 11 per 10 million miles the trains traveled since 2008.
That rate is a little lower than the national average, according to a Charlotte Observer analysis of Federal Transit Administration data.
Most of the Blue Line’s collisions with people are not fatal. The most recent fatal hit was in 2021 near the southern-most end of the line.
The operator was headed southbound on a clear, dark August morning going 52 miles per hour when they spotted four people on the track at about 5 a.m. The conductor couldn’t stop fast enough to avoid them, colliding at about 38 miles per hour. Two of the people died.
The crossing gates and warning devices had been active, according to Federal Transit data.
This story was originally published July 10, 2026 at 3:13 PM.
