At Monday's City Council Transportation and Planning Committee meeting, members asked Planning Department staff a lot of questions about how the Unified Development Process is going.

Planning Director Taiwo Jaiyeoba, who has only been in his role for a few months, admitted that the UDO process is long, complicated, and overdue. He said, "Our ordinance and policy documents have not really been consistent."

This slide from the meeting shows the relationships between various groups working on the UDO.

If you followed our BLE opening adventures on Friday, you may have noticed that we were pretty excited.

Okay, really excited.  We talked to dozens of transit riders who shared their #ridethattrain stories with us! 

Transit riders shared how a better transit system will help them navigate Charlotte!

The opening of the BLE was the culmination of decades of planning and hard work by our local transportation & planning staff and elected officials. Such a massive project doesn't reach completion without vision and commitment. We thank everyone who made it happen. 

Aligning the bus network with the new Blue Line Extension

On Monday, CATS implemented their Bus-Rail Integration Plan. Changes were made to over 20 bus routes and 700 bus stops. Check out the customer info booklet for details about new, discontinued, and changed routes and stops. 

On February 28th, Sustain Charlotte hosted the first Shifting Gears public action workshop of 2018, where close to 60 people discussed ways to propel cycling in Charlotte forward. The goal was for every participant to leave the event with one action item and one community contact to help them make progress toward their goal before the next Shifting Gears meeting!

How will the Blue Line Extension change the way you explore Charlotte? 

Sustain Charlotte, University City Partners, and Gokotta have partnered to map over 80 awesome destinations that you can reach on foot from the new stations. 

Check out the map, then post your transit photos and videos this weekend with #RideThatTrain! 

Celebrate the opening of the Blue Line light rail extension with South End Food Truck Friday at Sycamore Brewing, Charlotte B-cycle, Sustain Charlotte, & the Charlotte Rail Trail! Stop by our table at Sycamore to borrow a bicycle from Charlotte B-cycle and grab a Rail Trail Scavenger Hunt list. Bring back the completed scavenger hunt to be entered for a chance to win tickets to Biketoberfest Presented by the Charlotte Knights, or prizes from Historic South End, Charlotte Rail Trail & Sycamore Brewing!

You'll also be able to get dinner from Papi Queso, Gyro Twins, Tin Kitchen, Oowee BBQ, New Wrap Order, Libretto’s, or Smokin’ Aces at Food Truck Friday. To get to Sycamore Brewing, take the light rail to South End and get off at East-West Station. Then walk 0.3 miles south along the Rail Trail.

Share this event with your friends with the hashtag #ridethattrain.

Imagine a busy four-lane thoroughfare running through your neighborhood. Safe places to cross are far apart, so you may have to walk 1/2 of a mile or more to the nearest marked crosswalk or intersection just to safely reach your home or a bus stop. Even then, unsafe driving behavior like speeding and running red lights makes you worry for the safety of yourself and your loved ones.

This is the daily reality for thousands of residents in Charlotte's West Boulevard Corridor. The area's residents suffer from higher than average rates of serious injuries and fatalities from traffic collisions. 

But a neighborhood-based partnership is changing the status quo. 

Partnerships at the heart of transportation advocacy

Area residents who were ready to build power to improve West Boulevard began meeting with Sustain Charlotte and formed the Equitable Transportation Team in the summer of 2016. The team is chaired by Charlene Mack, a talented young community organizer who lives and works in the area.

The team has since become part of the West Boulevard Neighborhood Coalition (WBNC). That means even more residents and neighborhoods across the corridor are finding ways to get involved!

Reviewing land use and transportation patterns at a WBNC meeting

At the February 26 Charlotte City Council meeting, our Program Director Meg Fencil spoke during the public forum on the need for more walkable bus stops. View the footage here (starting at 41:15)

Residents in both the Lincoln Heights and West Boulevard communities recently gathered in partnership with Sustain Charlotte to discuss mobility challenges that seniors face in their respective neighborhoods. This is part of a broader effort to empower seniors to overcome mobility challenges preventing them from traveling to their desired daily destinations.

Photo credit: Michael Zytkow

Last year we created the Way2Go CLT initiative, an effort to inspire Charlotteans to get around town in healthy, sustainable ways. Participants used the app to track trips, and could win prizes for their efforts! Now we have the results available; With over 1,500 participants over eight months, Way2Go CLT was definitely impactful. Check out some of the highlights below.

Many senior adults in Charlotte struggle to maintain their mobility as they age, often resulting in social isolation and inability to meet daily needs. Thanks to generous support from Southminster, a non-profit retirement community, Sustain Charlotte is teaming up with neighborhoods across the city to identify specific mobility challenges that prevent Charlotte seniors from traveling to their desired daily destinations.

Photo credit: https://www.health.harvard.edu