Charlotte's CATS Rolls Out October Service Changes: 15-Minute Airport Sprinter, New Route 177 and West Charlotte Micro Zone
CHARLOTTE — Charlotte is a city in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. The Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) has implemented its October 2026 service changes, increasing frequency on core routes and adding a new northern connector route and an on-demand microtransit zone, according to the City of Charlotte. Route 5, the Airport Sprinter between Uptown and Charlotte Douglas International Airport, now runs every 15 minutes on weekdays and every 20 minutes on weekends. Route 9 on Central Avenue runs every 15 minutes daily, and Route 6 on Kings Drive runs every 20 minutes on weekdays.
Among express routes, Route 53x (Northlake Express) and Route 61x (Arboretum/Waverly Express) each added three peak trips, to 13 and 12 daily trips respectively, and Route 64x (Independence Blvd Express) gained new weekday midday service, hourly in both directions between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. The new Route 177, the North Meck Connector, runs hourly on weekdays in the same midday window, serving Uptown Charlotte, the Huntersville Gateway and Northcross park-and-rides, the Cornelius park-and-ride and Davidson Gateway.
For on-demand service, CATS launched a new Micro zone in West Charlotte, operating until 9 p.m. daily and serving destinations including West Boulevard, Wilkinson Boulevard, the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, the South Charlotte VA Clinic and the Blue Line's Woodlawn Station. Hours in the existing North Meck Micro zone were also extended to 9 p.m. daily. Riders can use the CATS-Pass app for live vehicle tracking and trip planning, or call 704-336-7433.
Source: City of Charlotte, charlottenc.gov; CATS October 2026 service change announcement
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Charlotte 市中心（Uptown）天际线。图片来源：Precisionviews，Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 4.0。Photo: Uptown Charlotte skyline. Image: Precisionviews, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
