NC DOT warns Charlotte mayor about what will happen if toll lanes project loses more support

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – In a new letter to Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles, NCDOT Secretary Daniel Johnson warns the project could lose $600 million in state funding if a regional planning organization pulls its support. That money would then be allocated to other projects.

Charlotte City Council put that possibility in motion last week when it voted six to five against continuing to support the project. Johnson also says re-starting the project would mean starting over with the planning and environmental process.

Last week’s Charlotte City Council vote came amid concerns from neighborhood groups about the project’s impact on communities like the historically Black Wilmore neighborhood.