Charlotte's Light Rail: Lynx Blue Line

[EnyoPhase]

I think I finally found where they're building the pedestrian overpass for the sugar Creek station. 

[dubone]

Thanks for sharing, but it is beyond me why they chose to do this north of the station instead of bridging into the elevators and stairs of the parking deck!  Plus their market is mostly to the south closer to NoDa, with the area nearer to Sugar Creek being switched to curvy non-grid streets that will not be redeveloped with as much density. 

It is still a relief that they got the ped bridge funded, so I guess that's at least something. 

 

[Matthew.Brendan]

There's at least 2 square blocks of empty lots and brick warehouses prime for redevelopment right along N. Davidson abutting Sugar Creek. Come back in 5-10 years pretty sure that whole area is gonna be dense with apartments. 

[SgtCampsalot]

19 minutes ago, Matthew.Brendan said:

There's at least 2 square blocks of empty lots and brick warehouses prime for redevelopment right along N. Davidson abutting Sugar Creek. Come back in 5-10 years pretty sure that whole area is gonna be dense with apartments. 

^Yep, and in that time I see the Howie Acres neighborhood (Bearwood Ave, Redwood Ave, Dinglewood Ave, Atmore St, Howie Circle) being another residential area that sees renovations, etc. It has far too decent a pseudo-grid network, good proximity, and small but interesting houses with a neighborhood park not to. And once NCDOT's Sugar Creek bridge is done you won't have to cross it to get to N Davidson St.

Edited June 22, 2016 by SgtCampsalot

[Niner National]

CATS and UNC Charlotte are apparently working on some student exclusive passes. No details beyond that yet.

[nmundo]

6 hours ago, Niner National said:

CATS and UNC Charlotte are apparently working on some student exclusive passes. No details beyond that yet.

It's been mentioned before in passing on some of the stuff the school has published. They made it sound as if it would work through the student ID cards. I'm really interested the see on what they actually end up doing.

[Jack Wrangler]

it is pretty disappointing Lockwood was completely left  without  any access to the light rail. The area could have used a pedestrian bridge over the train tracks before sugar creek. 

[Spartan]

On 6/24/2016 at 3:58 PM, Jack Wrangler said:

it is pretty disappointing Lockwood was completely left  without  any access to the light rail. The area could have used a pedestrian bridge over the train tracks before sugar creek. 

I think most people here would agree with you. If you look back in this thread (i'd recommend a search since there are 140 pages) you'll see a lot of discussion about that very issue.

[LKN704]

Does anyone know why CATS is building a cut and cover tunnel to the east of the UNCC station?

[southslider]

^To cross northbound Tryon.

[LKN704]

No, that's west of the UNCC station. They are building another one East of the station at the end of the tracks closer to the parking deck. CATS posted a construction photo on twitter. I'll add a link later.

https://mobile.twitter.com/BLEupdates/media/grid?idx=0

[kermit]

Based on the photo its just mislabeling of the Tryon street tunnel. The feature at the end of the line in the CATS photo is just a wall with a shadow cast on it.

[LKN704]

CATS did dredge at the end of the line past the station and create an embankment similar to the one leading into the tunnel on North Tryon. If you zoom into the picture you can see the downward slope of the track bed following the station.

Edited July 11, 2016 by LKN704

[DavieNative]

2 hours ago, LKN704 said:

CATS did dredge at the end of the line past the station and create an embankment similar to the one leading into the tunnel on North Tryon. If you zoom into the picture you can see the downward slope of the track bed following the station.

They did make a cutout past the station, My guess would be that it is either for track switching or for a future extension of the line.

[nmundo]

It's for vehicle storage like they do at 485 station.

[SgtCampsalot]

I recently spoke with an engineer with NCDOT working on the Sugar Creek grade separation over the BLE/CSX line.

Here's what the general final product will look like:

Redwood Ave will have a signalized intersection with only a painted crosswalk. Bearwood Ave will go under the bridge, but that is a dead-end road (that connects with the Howie Acres park).

I asked whether there would be any kind of path/sidewalk running from Redwood to Bearwood along the retaining wall, next to that church, so people wouldn't have to cross Sugar Creek to get to N Davidson, and I was told no because: 1) NCDOT doesn't build sidewalks unless municipalities tell them to, and 2) that would encourage people to congregate in a very hidden place next to the retaining wall where they shouldn't be. I wasn't able to get much else from the conversation because the engineering phase is different from the design phase.

This is a shame, as being able to go under that bridge as a cyclist/pedestrian was the silver lining of this bridge project. But they expect people to still cross a dangerous highway-road? I don't know anymore...

Edited July 20, 2016 by SgtCampsalot

[kermit]

North storage yard building. It went up fast.

 

Both tower structures for the ped crossing at Sugar Creek station are now up (sorry, too hot for photo)

[nmundo]

Is the pedestrian bridge at JW Clay station supposed to go across the entirety of Tryon? I drove past last night and it looked like they were building a structure for it on the side of the campus but I don't think I've ever seen it mentioned on any of the plans...

[southslider]

^Yes, fully across Tryon at JW Clay

[Niner National]

On 7/25/2016 at 3:49 PM, nmundo said:

Is the pedestrian bridge at JW Clay station supposed to go across the entirety of Tryon? I drove past last night and it looked like they were building a structure for it on the side of the campus but I don't think I've ever seen it mentioned on any of the plans...

The university and CMC are funding the cost of the bridge to that side of the road.

[KJHburg]

New JW Clay LYNX station parking garage as seen from Panera Bread which is adjacent. The pedestrian bridge is half way done over N Tryon and the steel frame is done for the other side of Tryon (CMC and UNCC side)  

[KJHburg]

New Parkwood Ave station. The area that seems the most behind with the extension is the bridge work over the mainline at Craighead in NoDa. 

[Third Strike]

An aerial tour of the Blue Line Extension, posted by the University City Partners:

http://www.universitycitypartners.org/take-a-visual-helicopter-tour-of-our-lynx-line-to-uptown/

[videtur quam contuor]

I was outbound on 85 yesterday and saw a very large concrete beam on a tractor trailer with the escort vehicle for oversize trailing the monster. I knew it had to be a bridge section and only BluLineXtnsn is building bridges. The trucks exited 85 at IKEA so on my return I came down 29 and what a change in the six weeks since I have been there. I know all the unseen work is critical but this change in view in just weeks is astounding. I think they may make their 2017 opening.

[SgtCampsalot]

16 minutes ago, tarhoosier said:

I was outbound on 85 yesterday and saw a very large concrete beam on a tractor trailer with the escort vehicle for oversize trailing the monster. I knew it had to be a bridge section and only BluLineXtnsn is building bridges. The trucks exited 85 at IKEA so on my return I came down 29 and what a change in the six weeks since I have been there. I know all the unseen work is critical but this change in view in just weeks is astounding. I think they may make their 2017 opening.

Looks like the northern pedestrian bridge here!

This was yesterday, heading south in 85: