Safety, working conditions emphasized in external review of CATS

CHARLOTTE — After safety threats, missed rides and low morale, Charlotte City Manager Marcus Jones ordered an outside review of CATS -- the Charlotte Area Transit System. In a news conference Friday, the city laid out the changes that will be made.

It’s been a year of problems and controversies at CATS.

Ethan Rivera, a CATS bus driver, was shot and killed while driving his route through Uptown in February. Safety became a yearlong talking point for drivers and staff. Meanwhile, riders experienced bus delays or missed routes, and the streetcar system struggled with timeliness and low usage.

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The city’s embattled transit department is trying to start fresh in 2023.

“We are always looking to continue improving, but that is something we have already started on and will continue to start on,” said Brent Cagle, the interim CEO of CATS, on Friday.

Safety improvements in and around the Transit Center and light rail station were one of the findings from the review. Cagle said the department is already implementing changes.

“I think through a safety and security focus, we hope to rebuild our confidence in our system from our community and we know that is very important,” he said.

He says ridership woes will improve with more staffing. CATS is looking at increasing pay and shifting to a four-day work week with 10-hour shifts for workers. Cagle says drivers favor that shift, but it will take some logistical maneuvering to put in place.

“I am committed to that,” he said. “I want to create an environment that balances the work-life schedule. If four-tens are what they want, I want to find a way to do that.”

He says the wheels are already in motion to implement many of the behind-the-scenes recommendations dealing with staff and leadership structure.

CATS operators are currently in the midst of negotiating a new contract, and a strike is on the table if things don’t go their way. CATS leadership declined to comment on those negotiations.

(WATCH BELOW: City to begin nationwide search for new CATS CEO)