CHARLOTTE — Construction crews are ripping up freshly poured concrete along the Lynx Blue Line extension nine weeks before opening day.
Whistleblower 9 Investigator Paul Boyd discovered that warning pavers for the visually impaired were placed in the wrong location at dozens of brand-new light rail crossings.
The design flaw meant multiple crossing gates could have closed directly onto blind pedestrians.
The warning paver design flaw is widespread and starts with four rail crossings at Tryon Street and Orr Road then extends north to Arrowhead Road, Owen Boulevard, Orchard Trace Lane, University Pointe Boulevard, Ken Hoffman Drive, JM Keynes Boulevard and Institute Circle across from UNC-Charlotte.
[RELATED: CATS announces opening date of LYNX Blue Line Extension]
[RELATED: Internal CATS audit says cost savings opportunities missed]
In total, Charlotte Area Transit System designed 30 pedestrian railway crossings incorrectly.
That is raising more questions about the management and oversight of the billion dollar Blue Line extension.
New questions for city officials about cracked rail tie problem
City council Rep. Larken Egleston told Whistleblower 9 that on Thursday, he was looking into the situation after it was brought it to his attention.
The Blue Line extension runs through Egleston’s district.
Channel 9 asked CATS to answer the following questions about the newly discovered Blue Line Extension problem:
- How did this design flaw happen and who is responsible?
- What's the solution?
- How much is it going to cost to fix it?
- How long will it take to correct this problem?
A CATS spokesperson told Whistleblower 9 on Thursday they were still working on finding answers.
[RELATED: CATS CEO speaks to Channel 9 about Blue Line Extension delays]
[RELATED: City Council approves additional $15.3M for Blue Line Extension]
[RELATED: Emails shed light on Blue Line extension project delay]
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