Charlotte's Light Rail: Lynx Blue Line

[Professor]

 Underground rail all over the world slows down after rush hour especially 9:00 pm.  Isn't there a schedule posted?

[kermit]

4 hours ago, Windsurfer said:

Are there any police cameras at the stations? Not sure if they'd help, but seem to help here in London where folks know they are potentially being watched.

Actually yes, I noticed on Wednesday that there was one of the mobile units with a mast and cameras down on the 11th street end of the platform thats been recently installed. It did not seem to be noticed by anyone on the platform.

[kermit]

Counted 9 construction workers (based on attire) who appeared to all work at 110 East waiting for a train at East West at 4 today.

They were talking about there not being any work on Saturday because ‘the train will be down’. Is CATS shutting down for maintenance this weekend? 

Anyway, even construction workers rely on transit….

EDIT: I looked, CATS seems to be running this weekend

Edited January 19 by kermit

[kermit]

Back at work in uptown tonight via rail:

The good: police presence at Frist Ward Park / Rail Trail from my arrival at 5 until my departure at 8. Many fewer loiterers at 9th st station,  not sure why (raining all day perhaps)

The bad: I walked down to CTC because I got ghost-trained. There were no lights at all on the imaginon side of 7th st station and only very dim lights on the market side. Lights at CTC were really dim (something is broken or not on).  CATS still needs to do the simple stuff. Third st also very dark.

Edited January 26 by kermit

[Windsurfer]

5 hours ago, kermit said:

Back at work in uptown tonight via rail:

The good: police presence at Frist Ward Park / Rail Trail from my arrival at 5 until my departure at 8. Many fewer loiterers at 9th st station,  not sure why (raining all day perhaps)

The bad: I walked down to CTC because I got ghost-trained. There were no lights at all on the imaginon side of 7th st station and only very dim lights on the market side. Lights at CTC were really dim (something is broken or not on).  CATS still needs to do the simple stuff. Third st also very dark.

Eventually, we're going to wind up with nodes instead of a central transportation nexus.....like London.  (aren't we?)

[kermit]

On 1/11/2024 at 7:23 PM, kermit said:

I like to think I am pretty tolerant of urban grit, but 9th Station after dark (it was around 7:30) is an -adventure-. Never really felt unsafe, but there were about 10 people on the platform, none waiting on a train, several yelling, sometimes at nobody, several engaged in arguments (“I didn’t call you a B”). Just a bunch of what the Brits would refer to as "anti-social behavior".

I have been using the station after dark since the BLE opened and this the most uncomfortable I have been there. The remarkably poor lighting in the area (particularity towards 11th street) is part of the problem, as is Daniel Levine’s inaction on his apocalypse museum exhibit.

Ok, credit where it’s due. Last week I noted a constant CMPD presence at First Ward park and 9th street platform looked to be less ‘loiterish’. (I actually walked down to 7th last week to get the train because of my experience the week before).

Tonight there was the Same police presence at the park plus three transit cops in the platform at 9th street, it was much more comfortable and the platform appeard to only be occupied by riders.

Good job CATS and CMPD.

On the downside, the same very dim lighting conditions remained at 7th, CTC and 3rd st. (9th st station at 8pm was like a sunny day)
 

Edited February 2 by kermit

[RANYC]

14 minutes ago, kermit said:

Ok, credit where it’s due. Last week I noted a constant CMPD presence at First Ward park and 9th street platform looked to be less ‘loiterish’. (I actually walked down to 7th last week to get the train because of my experience the week before).

Tonight there was the Same police presence at the park plus three transit cops in the platform at 9th street, it was much more comfortable and the platform appeard to only be occupied by riders.

Good job CATS.

On the downside, the same very dim lighting conditions remained at 7th, CTC and 3rd st. (9th st was like a sunny day at 8pm)
 

More like, Good Job CMPD.  I think it might be the expanded Operation Trio that CMPD announced a couple weeks back.  It was applied to CTC much of last year and resulted in a significant drop in the incident count.  I just wonder where the loitering nuisances go when the police step up their visibility in Uptown.  What other corners and pockets of town do they then start to menace.

[Windsurfer]

6 hours ago, RANYC said:

More like, Good Job CMPD.  I think it might be the expanded Operation Trio that CMPD announced a couple weeks back.  It was applied to CTC much of last year and resulted in a significant drop in the incident count.  I just wonder where the loitering nuisances go when the police step up their visibility in Uptown.  What other corners and pockets of town do they then start to menace.

Perhaps if they can't find other places as easy to hang out they'll change their ways a little.  

[Desert Power]

On 2/1/2024 at 8:22 PM, RANYC said:

More like, Good Job CMPD.  I think it might be the expanded Operation Trio that CMPD announced a couple weeks back.  It was applied to CTC much of last year and resulted in a significant drop in the incident count.  I just wonder where the loitering nuisances go when the police step up their visibility in Uptown.  What other corners and pockets of town do they then start to menace.

Security on the light rail and their platforms have seemed elevated in the last several months. I've read that, on the rail side, it has been a function of a new/better security contractor from CATS. Not sure, but I see the results.

 

[dylansukkert]

The light rail the last two weeks has been busier than ever with 15 headways. Morning and afternoon rush hour is over flowing and some having to wait for the next train. Also the afternoon  train etiquette is awful. 

[KJHburg]

I can't stop thinking about what I was told at the LYNX control center about a  vehicle driving on the tracks from 7th St through the CTC and through the convention center before finally stopping at the Brooklyn Village station.    And how we never heard about this on Channel 9 or any media.  

[kermit]

So, about that new infill station at Publix we have been talking about for more than five years…

Brightline announced today they will open a new infill station in Stuart in less than two years (w heavy freight and 40+ 80mph passenger trains zipping past daily).

 

 

[kermit]

Axios sorta reports that the Blue Line will be run at 12 peak period frequencies sometime in the completely unspecified future:

Quote

 

The big picture: Charlotte Area Transit System tells Axios it eventually aims to drop the light rail to 12- minute frequencies during peak revenue times. But first, it needs to get staffing and equipment up to par.

https://www.axios.com/local/charlotte/2024/04/15/blue-line-light-rail-frequency-when-headways-minutes

Digression: I remain deeply confused that collections of words, without any details, insight or sourcing at all are considered to be journalism these days. Shrug, maybe I am just old.

Anyway, more trains is good, but we are still a long way from 7-10 minute trains we were running pre-pandemic. If we want ridership to be back at those levels, we gotta run that many trains.

Edited April 16 by kermit

[JRCLT]

3 hours ago, kermit said:

Axios sorta reports that the Blue Line will be run at 12 peak period frequencies sometime in the completely unidentified future:

https://www.axios.com/local/charlotte/2024/04/15/blue-line-light-rail-frequency-when-headways-minutes

Digression: I remain deeply confused that collections of words (without any details, insight or sourcing) at all are considered to be journalism these days. Shrug, maybe I am just old.

Anyway, more trains is good, but we are still a long way from 7-10 minute trains we were running pre-pandemic.

You’re not old…it’s just the basics that some stories miss. (Not reporting) just telling stories.