Local leaders give NCDOT green light on I-77 toll lane expansion
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Buses, and first responders, would travel in the express lanes for free. Photo: Courtesy of WBTV
N.C. Department of Transportation will look for another private company to partner with on I-77 toll lanes, this time stretching 11 miles to the south.
Why it matters: Transportation officials say the express lanes would help to alleviate the bottlenecked interstate, cut down on congestion-related crashes and deliver longer-term relief than general-purpose lanes would.
- "77 is a disaster," Charlotte council member Tiawana Brown said Monday night. "I'll take a helicopter ... to Steele Creek before I get on 77."
The big picture: NCDOT alone doesn't have the money to widen the interstate from Uptown to the South Carolina line, an estimated $3.7 billion endeavor. The state agency has committed $600 million.
- Therefore, it will again need to bring on a private operator to help build the express lanes. However, the northern I-77 toll lanes, built by Cintra, are widely disliked and controversial.
- NCDOT claims things will be different this time. For one, it'll try to create a more competitive and transparent bidding process.
The latest: Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization voted Wednesday to move forward with the project.
- Earlier this month, the county and city boards took their own votes, but those votes were largely symbolic.
- At the CRTPO meeting, the "yes" vote of Charlotte council member Ed Driggs, who represents Charlotte on the board, carried the most weight. Charlotte's vote accounts for 31 of 68 total votes on the CRTPO board.
The other side: Most county commissioners oppose a private-public partnership and more lanes. They're unhappy with the northern tolls' fluctuating rates and say they aren't affordable to all.
- Representatives from the northern towns Huntersville, Cornelius and Davidson, where the current tolls exist, voted "no" at the CRTPO meeting.
Yes, but: Nonprofit Leading on Opportunities argues transportation is crucial to boosting upward mobility and removing barriers for low-income communities, especially areas like Nations Ford and Arrowood roads.
- "The near constant traffic jam on I-77 south contributes to unreliable travel time and hampers families' abilities to access opportunities," Tonya Jameson, director of civic engagement, told commissioners Tuesday.
- Commissioner Mark Jerrell said voting no would be "throwing the baby out with the bath water, i.e. $600 million."
What's next: A CRTPO subcommittee will come up with contract terms and put out a request for qualifications by August 2025.