CATS Gets Ready for CIAA Basketball Tournament

Charlotte, NC (February 25, 2008) - Thousands of fans are making plans to attend the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Basketball Tournament in the Queen City and the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) will be ready to make sure visitors and commuters can get around safetly and efficiently.

The CIAA Shuttle will connect fans to all the activities at the Charlotte Convention Center and the Afro-American Cultural Center.  The shuttle will operate via College Street to Seventh Street, over to McDowell Street, and up Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from 9:00 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. during the tournament.  CATS is also extending the hours of the Orange and Red Gold Rush Circulator Service, which operates in Center City, until midnight during the week of February 25-March 1.

The addition of the LYNX Blue line this year gives CIAA fans another way to travel around Charlotte during their visit.  "Visitors can come here, park their cars and not have to drive at all while they are in town for the tourney," said Keith Parker, CATS Chief Executive Officer.  "We have worked with area hotels to provide maps on how to get around Charlotte using CATS.  Some concierges at hotels will also be able to sell roundtrip, day and weekly passes to fans in advance."

CATS customer service will add a ticket-selling location inside the Charlotte Bobcats Arena throughout the tournament as well as pass sale agents at the I-485 Station and the Charlotte Transportation Center.  Ambassadors will be in place at key LYNX stations during the tournament to assist customers riding rapid transit for the first time.

To learn more about CATS and its services, call 704-336-RIDE or visit us online at http://www.ridetransit.org/.

With 63,000 daily commuters, expanded services, improved bus shelters, new transit centers and services for people with disabilities, investments in transit is attracting more and more people to ride CATS. These are just a few of the ways the half-cent sales tax keeps the whole Charlotte region moving forward.  For more information on CATS visit ridetransit.org.