CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It has been years in the making but Charlotte's new Gold Line streetcar extension has opened to passengers Monday morning.
It is set to be a game-changer for people in Charlotte’s west side.
"It's been 50 plus years or more where Beatties Ford Road has remained the same or kind of deteriorated," Charlotte resident Ronald Ross said.
Ross has lived in the Beatties Ford Road community for 50 years.
The CATS Gold Line officers five new streetcars connecting Charlotte’s west end neighborhood to Elizabeth neighborhood via Uptown Charlotte.
CATS said the streetcar will run every 20 minutes from 5 a.m. to 2 a.m. the project is just one of many efforts to revitalize Charlotte’s west side area.
“Everyone's really excited about the changes coming," Ross said.
But with the excitement comes concern, Ross said as the area becomes more accessible, the people in that neighborhood become more at risk of being displaced.
For now, the 11 additional stops the line will provide means new access for community members who use CATS for transportation.
This service will be free until January 2022.
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