Northern Meck Towns Want To Reduce Charlotte Voting Power On Transit Planning

CORNELIUS, N.C. – Who should call the shots when it comes to planning future highway and transit projects in our region?

Some towns in Northern Mecklenburg County want to shift power away from the city of Charlotte.

Currently, Charlotte has 46 percent of the voting power on the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization, or CRTPO.

But every 10 years, the group can change how the votes are weighted.

And in the past few weeks, town boards in Huntersville, Cornelius, and Davidson have all passed resolutions asking the board to allow each municipality to have one equal vote.

“So Charlotte basically wields near dictatorial power and we’ve seen that in the past, and we have an opportunity to change it in the future,” says former Cornelius Town Commissioner Kurt Naas.

Advocates for the change argue it’s not fair a vote cast by Charlotte allowed toll lanes to be built on I-77 in the northern part of the county.

“When it comes down to it, we are a regional transportation organization. And ‘regional’ being the word. And we should all come to the table and work together,” says Huntersville Town Commissioner and CRTPO member Rob Kidwell.