Welcome
Welcome to the first online meeting and community survey for CONNECT Beyond!
CONNECT Beyond is a regional mobility initiative led by the Centralina Regional Council and the Charlotte Area Transit System to guide the development of a vision for our region’s transit system and services.
Take our survey by December 31, 2020 to be entered to win a $100 Visa® Gift Card.
Survey
Help Us Shape the Future of Transit and Mobility in Our Region!
As you answer the questions below, please think about your travel needs prior to COVID-19. We will ask questions later to understand how your travel patterns have changed.
Project Overview
How do you want travel around the region in 25 years and beyond?
As rapid growth continues in our region, we want to make it easy to move within our towns and cities, and across county lines, using public transportation, connecting you and others to jobs, education, medical facilities, services, entertainment, sporting events, culture, and more.
Access to reliable, efficient, and well-connected transportation options is one of the most important factors to ensure our communities remain economically competitive and that everyone can benefit. CONNECT Beyond is working to identify gaps in current public transit services available and create a regional transit vision outlining opportunities to increase access and encourage use of public transit services and other mobility options.
Project Priorities
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Increase Economic Competitiveness
Keeping the momentum of regional job growth and economic expansion
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Improve Transportation Choice
Investing in transportation options beyond highways and roads as a means of expanding travel choices
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Enhance Public Transit
Growing services to meet current and future needs, improving connections between systems, and increasing mobility options
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Promote Sustainable Regional Growth
Supporting growth patterns that create efficiencies in infrastructure and services, support making stronger communities and downtowns, and safeguard our natural environment
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Advance Social Equity
Providing access to education, jobs, and housing to increase economic and social mobility
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Encourage Environmental Sustainability
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and saving energy
Our Region
Over 50% of people in the 12 county, 2 state CONNECT Beyond region live in one county and work in another.
The project study area includes Anson, Cabarrus, Cleveland, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Rowan, Stanly and Union Counties in North Carolina, and the urbanized areas of Lancaster and York Counties in South Carolina. The project study area includes rural communities, small towns, suburban areas, regional cities and an urban hub – the City of Charlotte.
Chances are that you or your next-door neighbor lives in one of the communities noted above and makes up that 50% statistic of living in one county and work in another. In addition, through your commutes you may have noted that each of these geography types has unique transportation challenge and need. Understanding and helping address those challenges is a key purpose of this study to develop our regional vision.
Imagine being able to travel from Anson County to Cleveland County without needing to own a car, imagine having access to more educational institutions via transit, imagine being able to reach more jobs, taking a power nap on the way to / from work, and having the luxury of keeping up with your favorite website or app during the commute?
The Process
We will develop our regional vision in four steps
Step 1: Evaluate Existing Transit Systems Summer - Fall 2020
Conduct a detailed evaluation of the region's current transit systems, past planning efforts and our partners’ previous and current transportation plans. During this time, we will also form stakeholder advisory committees and begin our initial public engagement.
Step 2: Identify High Capacity Transit Corridors Fall - Winter 2021
High capacity transit includes light rail, bus rapid transit, express bus, and commuter rail. In this step, we will identify high capacity transit corridors that are extensions of current or new corridors in the region.
Step 3: Envision a Total Mobility Network Winter - Summer 2021
Identify the role of transit in a multimodal network that will include a wide variety of transportation solutions, including bus connectors, demand response van networks, bike and pedestrian amenities, integration of ride share companies (e.g. Uber, Lyft, etc.), electric scooters, and other emerging technologies to supplement high capacity transit and commuter rail lines.
Step 4: Develop Implementation Strategies Summer - Fall 2021
In coordination with regional planning agencies, develop implementation strategies for refining, connecting, and expanding the existing transit network that supports the long-term vision and values of our region.
Total Mobility Network
What is a Total Mobility Network?
Transportation choice describes the variety of transportation options, such as driving a car, taking public transit, riding a bike, walking, or using a ride share service, available to residents and visitors within a region. Every person has different transportation needs and often combine several transportation options to accomplish a trip throughout a day. A total mobility network looks at a host of mode choice combinations, for example, a user may take a ride-share service to reach a park-and-ride lot and then take commuter rail to reach their destination.

To improve mobility in our region, we need to develop a seamless multimodal transportation system, a system that considers the simplest mobility mode (walking), to the largest mobility modes (commuter rail, light rail, bus rapid transit, etc.).
For the purposes of this initiative, the CONNECT Beyond process is starting with understanding the potential for the largest mobility modes and will work towards the simplest mobility modes. We are starting with high capacity transit corridors and will build onto this network with supportive transit and transportation options.
High Capacity Transit
High capacity transit describes transit modes that have more capacity than traditional buses and provide speedy transportation services, such as light rail, bus rapid transit, express bus or commuter rail.
Commuter Rail | Light Rail | Bus Rapid Transit | Express Bus |
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Service AreaRegional Urban ![]() Intended for Long-Distance Commuters from Suburbs into a Central City |
Service AreaRegional Urban ![]() Intended for a Variety of Trips from Regional to Local |
Service AreaRegional Suburban Urban ![]() Intended for a Variety of Trips from Regional to Local |
Service AreaRegional Suburban Urban ![]() Intended for Daily Commuters from Park-and-Ride Locations to Employment Centers |
FrequencyPeak and Limited Off Peak ![]() |
Frequency4 AM To 1 AM ![]() |
Frequency4 AM To 1 AM ![]() |
FrequencyPeak and Limited Off Peak ![]() |
Avg. Corridor Length20+ Miles |
Avg. Corridor Length10 - 20 Miles |
Avg. Corridor Length10 - 25 Miles |
Avg. Corridor Length15 - 20 Miles |
Avg. Distance Between Station / Stops2-5 Miles ![]() |
Avg. Distance Between Station / Stops1 Mile ![]() |
Avg. Distance Between Station / Stops0.5 - 2 Miles ![]() |
Avg. Distance Between Station / StopsRegional Service = 5 Miles ![]() |
Candidate High Capacity Transit Corridors
Interactive Map
The CONNECT Beyond team has been analyzing transportation and transit plans from communities across our region, previous public input, current and future travel patterns, population and employment growth trends, regional growth initiatives, future land use, and other data, to develop or refine draft high capacity transit corridors.
We want to hear from you! On the next several slides, you can zoom in to specific counties and share your views on the corridors most related to where you want to travel.
Cabarrus & Rowan Counties
Tell us how you feel about the candidate high capacity transit corridors in Cabarrus and Rowan Counties.
Your response has been submitted. Thank you!
Gaston, Cleveland, & Lincoln Counties
Tell us how you feel about the candidate high capacity transit corridors in Gaston, Cleveland, and Lincoln Counties.
Your response has been submitted. Thank you!
Mecklenburg, Iredell, & Union Counties
Tell us how you feel about the candidate high capacity transit corridors in Mecklenburg, Iredell, and Union Counties.
Your response has been submitted. Thank you!
Anson, Stanly, & Eastern Union Counties
Tell us how you feel about the candidate high capacity transit corridors in Anson, Stanly, and Eastern Union Counties.
Your response has been submitted. Thank you!
E. York & N. Lancaster Counties
Tell us how you feel about the candidate high capacity transit corridors in E. York and N. Lancaster Counties.
Your response has been submitted. Thank you!
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Regional Partners
CONNECT Beyond is a regional mobility initiative that is being led by the Centralina Regional Council and Metrolina Transit Commission in collaboration with our regional partners. As we develop this regional transit vision, we will create action-oriented implementation strategies to help our regional partners to plan effective transit investments and coordinate transit operations to meet the need of the growing and changing population.