The Charlotte City Council on Monday unanimously approved spending $37.9 million to continue designing the Red Line commuter train to Lake Norman.
The city has hired HDR Engineering to design the 22-mile train, from uptown to Davidson. This new contract will bring the design of the Red Line to 30 percent.
The money will ultimately come from the new one-cent transportation sales tax, which was approved by Mecklenburg County voters in November and will be levied starting in July. The Red Line’s design and ultimate construction will transfer to the new Metropolitan Public Transportation Authority later this year.
The city bought the actual track from Norfolk Southern railroad in 2024.
Once HDR is finished with design work, the Red Line will face a big hurdle: Whether the train qualifies for a grant from the federal government to help pay for construction costs.
The line is expected to cost about $1.4 billion.
