Charlotte, NC — Trolley Shutdown

Rail Transit Online – January 2006

Heritage streetcar service will be suspended for about a year beginning Feb. 6 to allow work on the new South LRT line to begin in the Uptown district.  Major projects include double tracking and bridge widening.  Regular service using a restored Charlotte trolley and three Birney replicas supplied by Gomaco began in mid-2004 and has been more successful than anticipated, carrying around 264,000 passengers during 2005 compared to early estimates of 100,000 annually.  Charlotte Trolley, the volunteer organization that staffs the streetcars, wants the Charlotte Area Transit System to set up a temporary 600-ft. (182.9 meter) trolley track to give demonstration rides during the shutdown.