With the staggering gas prices that have hit Charlotte residents in the recent months, ridership on the city’s mass transit system has seen an enormous jump. Comprised of both long and short distance busses as well as the light rail, Charlotte has begun to offer its residents true alternatives to during to and from work. So much so, that in the last month, ridership has jumped 39 percent. Previously, the department of transportation has had to look hard and sink into their pockets to get riders to ditch their cars and take mass transit. Thanks in part to the gas crisis and the ever failing economy, CATS has found themselves in a predicament which will weigh heavily on their future plans for expansion.
With the influx of patrons to mass transit there has also been a high level of revenue pouring into the system. Sadly with crude oil at high, as well as high costs for raw metal, the transit system has been forced to reevaluate whether it can expand by ways of new busses, new rail lines, and revised park and ride lots. The predicament is trying to retain the amount of new ridership that we have seen over the past few months. Long term wise, a high level of customers using the system is great but people will be looking for newer and more efficient lines of transportation. Additional areas will need to be reached and customers will need to be satisfied. These are a few of the problems that CATS faces in the upcoming months. Plans to enforce several different tax programs are thought to help with revenue but whose end results are still unknown. I believe that there is no better time than the present to grab new riders. Without needing any press to do so, people are making the smart choice and switching over to public transportation. The key is to get them used to it and keep new riders coming aboard.
I have looked over your blog a few times and I love it.