CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) laid out recommended changes for the I-77 toll lane project on Wednesday.
The measures included negotiating better terms with the toll contractor, converting some toll lanes to general purpose lanes and using the shoulders as lanes during rush hours.
"The key is what is the most competitive alternative we can advance today to make improvements on that facility," said transportation secretary James Trogdon.
Trogdon said that alternative is to convert one planned toll lane to a free lane from exit 23 to 28 and add another free lane from 28 to 36.
The projected cost would be $550 to $800 million and that would still require the project to fit into the state's overall transportation plan -- meaning it might not actually be implemented until 2025.
Trogdon said it would not be feasible to walk away from the contract with CINTRA, the Spanish company that will manage the toll lanes and reap the cost of the tolls. However, he did say the end game was for the state to eventually take control.
"This is an economic disaster in the making," said county commissioner Jim Puckett.
He's been a firm opponent of the toll project, saying it would hurt business in the northern part of the county. On Wednesday, Puckett said the state solution is at least a step in the right direction, but more is needed.
"If we do not understand the cost of not fixing this and factor that in, we are going to pay for this for the next five decades over economic development," Puckett said.
Trogdon said there are some things that could be in place next summer that would help -- one of which would be hardening the shoulders and using them as lanes during peak hours.
"Our initial improvements, I think we can have those kind of things negotiated and report to the General Assembly and that could go into effect early next year," said Trogden.
These recommendations will be finalized by NCDOT and sent to the legislature for next year's long session.
Governor Roy Cooper issued this statement on the NCDOT's suggestions:
This was a bad deal for families in the Charlotte-area and while the ultimate goal is to ease traffic and have North Carolina operate the project, I appreciate the Department of Transportation’s work with local leaders to identify protections and improvements addressing immediate concerns. Today’s (Wednesday's) recommendations are a good first step and l encourage legislative leaders to support these changes instead of defending this bad contract that will hurt working families.