CHARLOTTE – The N.C. Department of Transportation and N.C. Turnpike Authority are inviting the public to learn more about a project in development to improve 11 miles of Interstate 77 from the South Carolina state line to I-277/N.C. 16 (Brookshire Freeway) in uptown Charlotte.
Per state law, toll projects in North Carolina must be approved by the local planning organization. The Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization (CRTPO) first submitted this project to NCDOT for prioritization in 2014. This project is listed as ‘I-5718’ in NCDOT’s 2026-2035 State Transportation Improvement Program, or STIP.
In October 2024, CRTPO requested NCDOT move forward with a Public Private Partnership (P3) delivery process and created a working group in partnership with the Department to identify project priorities and develop key contract terms.
The purpose of the project is to manage congestion by providing an option for a reliable travel time along I-77 by implementing managed lanes consistent with recommendations from the 2007 Fast Lanes Study and CRTPO’s 2050 Metropolitan Transportation Management Plan, and to improve traffic operations by increasing travel speed and throughput along I-77.
Since January, NCDOT has presented information about the I-77 South Express Lanes project at 25 small group meetings in local communities, reaching more than 800 people.
Two public meetings have been scheduled to provide people with an opportunity to learn more about the project development process, speak with members of the project team and submit comments.
The first meeting is happening at the Innovation Center on Johnson C. Smith University’s campus on November 12, from 4 p.m. – 7 p.m.
If you can’t make that meeting, another one is happening the following day at Silver Mount Baptist Church from 4 p.m. – 7 p.m.
