Workers prepare to board the LYNX train at Old Concord Road station for test run to UNC Charlotte and back.

University City’s LYNX Blue Line Extension made the front page of The Charlotte Observer last Sunday, Aug. 6. The newspaper has provided an informative, in-depth read AND, when viewed at charlotteobserver.com, a wonderful 2.4-minute glimpse of what’s in store once the trains open for business next spring.

Charlotte Observer photographer Diedra Laird rode a train last week with Blue Line Project Director Jill Brim and shot video as the project’s main contractor ran tests of the North Tryon Street-to-campus- segment of 9.1-mile BLE line.

Among the video highlights:

• Shots of the sleek interior of the new passenger cars.
• A view from the train as it passes over Concord Road and enters the median of North Tryon Street.
• Clips from a second video shot from a drone as it flies down North Tryon Street.
• A rare glimpse inside the tunnel under North Tryon Street and on the trestle over Toby Creek as the train enters the UNC Charlotte campus.
• Arrival of the train at the line’s final destination, the Main Station at UNC Charlotte.

The article has much more information, including whether all motorists will be allowed to park for free at the JW Clay Boulevard and University City Boulevard station decks (no, but buyers of certain transit passes will).

Learn much more about the Blue Line Extension

Click here to read the full Charlotte Observer article and watch the video