Charlotte Area Transit System CEO John Lewis addressed criticism of the decision to avoid the heart of uptown in plans for a tunnel that would take riders to the airport. He spoke Monday on WFAE’s Charlotte Talks.
“In this area we clearly disagree," Lewis said. "The most common mistake people make when they are thinking of public transit is they think this is only about work commuters.”
By focusing on commuters, Lewis says the Silver Line would only be focusing on morning and evening rush hour traffic, which is not sustainable.
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“It just doesn't make sense," he said. "It almost puts me to the point where I wonder if some people are trying to kill our project by moving us and putting focus on inefficient, ineffective high cost options.”
Lewis says the build out for the Silver Line from Matthews to uptown to the airport will cost an estimated $6 to $8 billion.
