Getting Ready for the BLE Opening
By Sabrina Colón, Charlotte Communications & Marketing
The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) LYNX Blue Line Extension (BLE) is celebrating its grand opening on Friday, March 16, 2018. The BLE is a 9.3-mile extension of the successful LYNX Blue Line light rail service extending from 7th Street Station in Center City through the NoDA (North Davidson) and University areas, ending on the UNC Charlotte campus.
It’s easy to think of such a large project in terms of the sophisticated train systems and booming transit-oriented development, but it takes hundreds of individuals working together to pull off a project of this magnitude. Two members of the CATS team who have been working diligently behind the scenes to open the BLE are Gary Lee and Marie Darby.
Lee is the master of all things maintenance. As the manager of rail car maintenance and interim manager of Maintenance of Way (MOW), his duties include providing light rail vehicles for riders every day. This includes commissioning all new vehicles (CATS went from 20 to 42 trains) and managing the teams of experts that keep the fleet in operating order. He also manages the four disciplines of Maintenance of Way, which include track, train control, overhead catenary and sub-stations. Simply put, he keeps the trains on the tracks in safe working order.
Darby handles the operations side of the house. As the rail transportation manager, she is responsible for coordination and oversight of all daily activities on the rail and street car system, including managing the Rail Operations Control Center, hiring, training and development of all operations personnel for the Blue Line. She is also responsible for establishing, reviewing and editing pre-revenue documents, rail rules/policies and procedures, and conducting all related pre-revenue scheduled testing in preparation for opening of the BLE.
“Usually all people see is opening day and how it’s running but we’ve been working for the past six years to get to this point. Many individuals played a part in making us successful. There was a lot of collaboration between departments, between vendors, between contractors and consultants,” says Lee.
There is a lot to be proud of on a project of this scale but the two successes both Lee and Darby agree on are the people and the safety record.
“I am very proud of our staff. With all the various obstacles that had to be overcome, they really stepped up,” says Darby. “When I first came to CATS we were still operating one-car trains, and when we moved to two-car trains the ridership just boomed. People in Charlotte are really excited and when we have out-of-towners they are really impressed with the system, the operators and that our staff is extremely knowledgeable, polite and helpful.”
Lee adds, “For us to be successful in the delivery and acceptance of the light rail, it takes a tremendous team.”
The light rail system is incredibly complex and requires nearly 200 employees to run the network safely including operators, controllers, supervisors, dispatchers, signal and track maintainers, sub-station and overhead catenary technicians, electro-mechanics, machinists, rail car maintenance assistants and store clerks. Lee and Darby keep these various teams synchronized so all the public sees is clean, on-time train ready to take them to their next destination.
As for the safety record, the LYNX Blue Line currently averages above 95 percent on time performance. This can only be achieved with highly trained employees and rail vehicles that are in proper working condition.
Both Darby and Lee came to Charlotte from prior positions working for long established transportation systems. Lee, originally from Baltimore, worked at the Maryland Transportation Administration (MTA) Subway Service and Darby’s previous position was with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) in Washington, D.C.
The opening of the BLE is an exciting moment for the entire team, but this is only one milestone for CATS as the pieces of the overall 2030 Transit Corridor System Plan come together.
“As soon as we open the Blue Line (Extension) we close a chapter and open another,” says Lee. “First article inspections for equipment for the (Gold Line) street car begin in May. That’s the next goal.”
With the opening of the BLE, CATS is also implementing a new Bus/Rail integration plan to help riders connect to the BLE, and features more direct connections and improved travel time. This is part of a bigger bus revamp CATS has planned called “Envision my Ride.”
So, when is the party?
Join the celebration on Friday, March 16, 2018 at 10 a.m. when service starts on the BLE. More details available here.
