Traffic Congestion and Highway Construction

[monsoon]

......

I'm not saying that DOT should have known in the 1980s, with cows bathing in Little Sugar Creek, to build it 4 lanes right away, but how about a little bit of extra space under the bridges for the eventuality that Charlotte would grow. Those bridges are supposed to have a 50 year lifespan or so, right? Did they think that Charlotte in 2030 would still have all those cows? Did NCDOT not build all the other roads the connect the subdivisions to that development to make all that development happen? If they believed south Charlotte should only be a rural area, why did all those other streets get bumped up from little 2-lane roads?.......

I lived here as an adult in 1978, and nobody would have ever guessed that Charlotte would have grown the way it did in the following decades. Charlotte's two largest employers now, BofA and Wachovia, were just two small NC only banks in those days. I-85 and I-77, where just 4 lane highways (except for the downtown portion that has not change from that time), there was no airline hub here, and most newcomers today would not recognize Charlotte from those times. (and I am not referring to just the geography). So the expectations that a 4 lane limited access highway connecting I-77 at the SC border to East Independence Blvd at the Union County border, were very reasonable given that was the design specification of the interstates in the area. Remember a lot of the funding for I-485 came from the Federal government, and like rail transit, it is very difficult to get a project like this approved without a lot of due diligence based on Federal rules. They were required to submit designs without unreasonable expectations for growth.

In the conversations here, I notice that much of the blame is being placed on the NCDOT for Charlotte's sprawl, and I will tell you they are not responsible. They are an implementer and not the ultimate decision maker in road building in NC. Those decisions come from the local government, the MPO, and the NC Legislature which sets the legislation which determines how the NCDOT operates. And basically the NC Legislature says to the CLT area, this is how much money you get, tell us which roads you want built with it.

Charlotte's bad development for the most part is the responsibility of Charlotte. This city sprawls over close to 300 sq/miles and as we have noted in other threads, the city continues to approve very bad development that is going to push demand up for even more roads. Everything from the stuff at North Lake mall, the IKEA development, all of the starter housing, the McMansion neighborhoods going up on the peripheral, and even Midtown Square are all really bad traffic generators. By state decree and local political demand, the NCDOT will eventually have to build roads for all of this.

If you want an excellent example of this, the intersection of Hwy 16 (west of the city) and Huntersville-Mt. Holly Rd, was a country intersection with little local traffic in the area. In the last 6-7 years, the city of Charlotte has approved 4 big strip malls for all 4 corners of this intersection including a super-Walmart, a huge Harris Teeter (their typical crap) and numerous other chain stores. So today that country road is jam packed with people and there are cries for why the NCDOT doesn't build roads there to handle the traffic. So who's fault is that? The NCDOT or the City of Charlotte which approved all of that development knowing the roads would never handle it?

[Justadude]

^ Amen to that. The time has come for the City Council to start passing binding regulations regarding new development, that can't be circumvented by lobbyists and the Good Ol' Boy Network.

[Spartan]

In the conversations here, I notice that much of the blame is being placed on the NCDOT for Charlotte's sprawl, and I will tell you they are not responsible. They are an implementer and not the ultimate decision maker in road building in NC. Those decisions come from the local government, the MPO, and the NC Legislature which sets the legislation which determines how the NCDOT operates. And basically the NC Legislature says to the CLT area, this is how much money you get, tell us which roads you want built with it.

Charlotte's bad development for the most part is the responsibility of Charlotte. This city sprawls over close to 300 sq/miles and as we have noted in other threads, the city continues to approve very bad development that is going to push demand up for even more roads. Everything from the stuff at North Lake mall, the IKEA development, all of the starter housing, the McMansion neighborhoods going up on the peripheral, and even Midtown Square are all really bad traffic generators. By state decree and local political demand, the NCDOT will eventually have to build roads for all of this.

If you want an excellent example of this, the intersection of Hwy 16 (west of the city) and Huntersville-Mt. Holly Rd, was a country intersection with little local traffic in the area. In the last 6-7 years, the city of Charlotte has approved 4 big strip malls for all 4 corners of this intersection including a super-Walmart, a huge Harris Teeter (their typical crap) and numerous other chain stores. So today that country road is jam packed with people and there are cries for why the NCDOT doesn't build roads there to handle the traffic. So who's fault is that? The NCDOT or the City of Charlotte which approved all of that development knowing the roads would never handle it?

Its true that the City should be given no props for the types of development it has approved. But its not just the City's fault. Its theirs and NCDOT. Charlotte is a victim of poor timing for its explosive growth. Its important, though, to recognize that the relationship between land use and transportation is reciprocal. You cannot mess around with one and not impact the other. The City is, at least outwardly, appearing to legitimately try to fix the problem. Just look at the USDG and what it calls for within the City. NCDOT on the other hand does not appear to be changing its ways. I think if it were, the loop roads in other cities may be discouraged- particularly around Raleigh (why do they need 2 loops?).

[ChiefJoJo]

The sad thing is that to beg so much for transportation funding, it sounds like Charlotte had to pretend that it would stay exactly the same forever with a wink and a secret mason handshake. There were likely lots of issues surrounding that, and I don't doubt that the city made all sort of pretenses, but I agree with Spartan, that it goes further to prove DOT's incompetence to only plan bridges and interchanges to expand by one lane in the largest city of the state, which was already growing fast.

I'm not saying that DOT should have known in the 1980s, with cows bathing in Little Sugar Creek, to build it 4 lanes right away, but how about a little bit of extra space under the bridges for the eventuality that Charlotte would grow. Those bridges are supposed to have a 50 year lifespan or so, right? Did they think that Charlotte in 2030 would still have all those cows? Did NCDOT not build all the other roads the connect the subdivisions to that development to make all that development happen? If they believed south Charlotte should only be a rural area, why did all those other streets get bumped up from little 2-lane roads?

I know it was very complex and it still is. But NCDOT should share in the blame for not leaving room for much expansion. If they had, we'd be talking about 4-laning it without nearly as much extra budget. But the fact that the whole thing will need to be rebuilt to get it that point is pretty much insane.

As to the inevitability of sprawl, I agree that our society is programmed to repeat that mistake over and over again. But I also believe that it can change one person at a time realizing the irrationality of it all. Our culture MUST change or our society will be completely unsustainable and eventually threatened. I don't have much sympathy for people complaining about traffic on these roads when they are clearly part of the problem. It is as though people don't want to be subject their consequences of their own patterns done by others. But I also think that many people are coming to the realization of the benefits of an urban lifestyle. I sold my car and renovated my home with the proceeds, and still save 6-800 dollars a month in car expenses.

Even if NCDOT was not corrupt, if its revenues or budget were doubled, if it spent here what we put in, the city would still be stuck in traffic. There is just absolutely no way to build out of the mess when each user of the system drives very long distances at the same time that 90% of the other users are doing the same. It can never ever sustain itself.

There's a lot of wiggle room between the assumption of an eternally rural future and what exists today or what projects in 2030, and I'd suggest that is why the road looks how it does. (Incidentally, it won't take an enormous effort to fix, like say Independence.) Certainly, there is an inextricable link between land use and transportation, and thus NCDOT (and the Legislature, who writes the governing statues) implicitly shares some blame in the problem. However, I would argue on a number of land use-transportation fronts including I-485, the city has taken little to no responsibility (that I have seen) for the problems it has been a willing partner in creating, and DOT is left to pick up most of the mess. Only in recent years, as congestion has overburdened much of the roadway system, have things begun to change for the better. I 100% applaud all of the efforts the city has undertaken in the past several years: 2025 Transit/LU Vision, the USDG, complete streets policy, 2030 Plan, etc.

NCDOT on the other hand does not appear to be changing its ways. I think if it were, the loop roads in other cities may be discouraged.

NCDOT might not be a part of the solution, but the problem is much larger in scope than a state agency. Here on Urban Planet, and perhaps a few urban pockets in NC, you'll get a lot of agreement that further construction of loop roads are probably a waste of money. But in the the Legislature and the broader state populace who elects them, I think you'll find that most folks would say we aren't building these roads fast enough. Until a critical mass of the electorate demands smarter infrastructure policies, or the federal government intervenes (unlikely), nothing will change.

At least, among SE states, NC is somewhat progressive on transit and rail funding. It may not be what's needed, but it's a decent place to start.

[monsoon]

.... Its theirs and NCDOT. ....... NCDOT on the other hand does not appear to be changing its ways. I...

You have not explained how the NCDOT is responsible for this and what ways need to be changed. As I just plainly said above, the NCDOT does not decide to build loop roads. It is the political process that does and it is THEN the NCDOT's job to implement it. If Charlotte had not wanted I-485, it would have never been built.

[Charlotte_native]

All of this is exactly why mass transit supporters wanted the OPTION of mass transit at least in a few corridors. Everyone who lives in, and moves to, Charlotte doesn't have to deal with any of this if they don't want to. You might not get the 3000 SF house on a 1/3 acre, but you do have an option not to lead an auto-centric lifestyle. This is what the opponents of light rail and mass transit never understood about the arguement for the need to give the option to those of us who don't want our money paying for more asphalt or our time wasted in a car. No number of trains that we can build in our lifetime will fix this problem or be able to get everyone on board, but thousands of people over time will have the ability to choose to opt out of this problem and discussion.

In the least if I lived in a suburban area I'd pick one with the decent town center, retail and shopping within walking distance, and I would only live there if I also worked there -- commuting for me will never be an option. Too much of my life spent aggravated with traffic in a car.

Edited February 7, 2008 by Charlotte_native

[Justadude]

NCDOT might not be a part of the solution, but the problem is much larger in scope than a state agency. Here on Urban Planet, and perhaps a few urban pockets in NC, you'll get a lot of agreement that further construction of loop roads are probably a waste of money.

FWIW, there's also a lot of resistance to highway expansion projects in rural areas. It's easy to find Union County natives who despise 485 for destroying the fabric of Matthews, Stallings, Indian Trail, and pretty much the whole 74 corridor for several miles in each direction.

[PlazaMidwoodGuy]

FWIW, there's also a lot of resistance to highway expansion projects in rural areas. It's easy to find Union County natives who despise 485 for destroying the fabric of Matthews, Stallings, Indian Trail, and pretty much the whole 74 corridor for several miles in each direction.

That's certainly true. But these Union County residents keep electing officials that are just as pro-growth as anyone in Charlotte or Mecklenburg, if not more so. Until the good folks in Union (my native county) get fed up enough with the strain caused by explosive growth and start putting people in office who will learn to say "NO" to development for development's sake, nothing will change. In the last county commissioners election, did they not throw out all their reps that supported any sort of growth controls and elect 100% Republican candidates who ran on a "pro property rights" and "pro growth" platform?

Naturally, Mecklenburg is guilty of much of the same mentality, but at least we have more infrastructure here to handle it (mostly). With the exception of Rea Rd. and Hwy. 74, the western part of Union Co. is nothing but 2-lane country roads that are overburdened with strip shopping centers and cookie cutter subdivisions, one after the other after the other. Furthermore, Union has serious water supply issues and problems with soils that won't perk and therefore require being connected to county or municipal sewer systems.

Edited February 7, 2008 by PlazaMidwoodGuy

[Justadude]

That's certainly true. But these Union County residents keep electing officials that are just as pro-growth as anyone in Charlotte or Mecklenburg, if not more so. Until the good folks in Union (my native county) get fed up enough with the strain caused by explosive growth and start putting people in office who will learn to say "NO" to development for development's sake, nothing will change.

This is one of the quieter but sadder political stories in the region. Rural citizens, in Union and elsewhere, tend to oppose urbanity out-of-hand for cultural reasons. Therefore they instinctively vote for conservative candidates, with the expectation that they will be the best protectors of the rural communities. Unfortunately these candidates are also the friendliest to suburban developers, and happily sign off on projects that wipe out rural acreage as quickly as they can build a 2,000 home subdivision.

The result is that the political power within the county shifts rapidly away from those rural citizens, in favor of newly-arrived suburban folk. In Union County, it's pretty plain to see that process in action as schools are built. While Parkwood and Monroe High are rotting away, Weddington and Porter Ridge look like university facilities. Forest Hills High's biggest capital project in the past two decades was a new football stadium... at least the athletes will have a shot at getting to college.

I think there's a very quiet, but very dangerous social chasm developing in these counties, with Union being perhaps the most overt. Just as the city of Charlotte faces problems with ghettoization and inequality, the neighboring counties appear to be developing similar issues between mostly-poor rural areas and mostly-affluent suburbs. It's worth keeping an eye on county policies that focus heavily on suburban infrastructure (which almost always generates further growth) to the point of neglecting the health of longstanding rural communities. Roads are only one factor in the dialogue, but major projects like 485 and 74 can be symbolic of much larger issues.

[orulz]

Here is my observation:

Do rural folks hate traffic jams? Yes. Do rural folks hate that quiet farmland is neither quiet nor farmland anymore? Yes. Do rural folks hate that their way of life, and that of their parents and grandparents and so on, is rapidly dying? Yes.

Do they want to give up their right to sell their property to a developer who offers them MILLIONS for the family farm? In most cases - NO. This final concern, one of property rights, a traditionally conservative value, trumps the prior three for most rural folks on the fringe of a growing urban area--at least when election day comes. Even if the current residents hold on until their dying breath, their children, who have long since moved to the suburbs, will sell out once they inherit the farm themselves.

[Spartan]

NCDOT might not be a part of the solution, but the problem is much larger in scope than a state agency. Here on Urban Planet, and perhaps a few urban pockets in NC, you'll get a lot of agreement that further construction of loop roads are probably a waste of money. But in the the Legislature and the broader state populace who elects them, I think you'll find that most folks would say we aren't building these roads fast enough. Until a critical mass of the electorate demands smarter infrastructure policies, or the federal government intervenes (unlikely), nothing will change.

At least, among SE states, NC is somewhat progressive on transit and rail funding. It may not be what's needed, but it's a decent place to start.

Very good points. NCDOT does get some cool points for its passenger rail and transit efforts.

You have not explained how the NCDOT is responsible for this and what ways need to be changed. As I just plainly said above, the NCDOT does not decide to build loop roads. It is the political process that does and it is THEN the NCDOT's job to implement it. If Charlotte had not wanted I-485, it would have never been built.

You're right I didn't explain that. I talk to many people who work with NCDOT employees on a regular basis. From what I have learned in my discussions of NCDOT practices, they are working against what good planners know to be the right things to do. I know its not all of NCDOT- but unfortunately as an organization, this is the reputation that they have around Charlotte.

• They do not want anything less than 12' travel lanes on their projects.
  
• They do not want to pay for sidewalks in urban and urbanizing places unless they are 5' back of curb (eg: South Blvd).
  
• They do not want to pay for the extra right of way for bike lanes and planting strips
  
• The two previous practices go directly against their own policies set forth by their own Bike & Ped Division
  
• They do not want to retrofit any existing roads to the new standards mentioned above.
  
• They do not want street trees because they cause damage to power lines when it ices and cars can run into them.
  

Basically they are not in favor of context sensitive design from all practical perspectives. Meanwhile Charlotte wants to do the following:

• Narrow lanes to 10' to acommodate bike lanes and use passive traffic calming techniques (where possible!)
  
• Build and retrofit sidewalks to 6' or 8' on thoroughfares with a planting strip where possible
  
• Plant street trees
  
• Retrofit existing roads to modern standards
  
• NCDOT forces the City to pay for maintenance of STATE roads so that at least some roads can be built the way they the USDG calls for, and the way that NCDOT's Bike & Ped Division calls for in many cases.
  

Now, I won't go through all of NCDOT's standards, but they are actually not all bad. Its just that in practice they don't appear to use them. The problem is more of a procedural one. The general public doesn't have to deal with all of that on a day-today basis, but we will have to deal with the results of their inaction. Their actions also seem to stem from a lack of money as well as an old school mentality.

Now with DOT's $152.4 million cost overrun I wonder if the rest of NC will be as ticked off with them as Meck residents were about the Lynx overruns?

[monsoon]

......

Now with DOT's $152.4 million cost overrun I wonder if the rest of NC will be as ticked off with them as Meck residents were about the Lynx overruns?

I don't think you will find anyone that is happy with the NCDOT as an implementor. However $154M spread over the entire state, is most likely less noticeable than $100M within the city of Charlotte.

While I don't disagree with anything you said about the NCDOT in the way they put restrictions on roads, the comments that brought this up were about I-485, and what you list does not seem to cover anything about that.

[Raintree21]

Scurry Construction, Inc. has been awarded the Providence Road widening contract.

[Spartan]

While I don't disagree with anything you said about the NCDOT in the way they put restrictions on roads, the comments that brought this up were about I-485, and what you list does not seem to cover anything about that.

The issue was 485's impact on southeastern Charlotte (meaning the land uses spurred by it and allowed by the city). Its impossible to talk about that and not other NCDOT processes too.

[Raintree21]

CATS and the NC DOT will have a workshop on the Independence Blvd. improvements on Tuesday from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the activity center room at Eastland Mall.

[dubone]

At least the Independence project will use Garvee bonds to stay on schedule regardless of when it is officially funded. That makes sense since it is way over due, and inflation will easily outpace the bond rates.

I do wish they'd just bite the bullet and do the whole thing, or at least just go ahead and fund all the interchanges with the cross streets. That way, it could eliminate the lights, even though it wouldn't be widened yet or close all of the driveway access points. I think it would go a long way, though, to solving some of the problems in the intermediate time before they have all the money to do the full expansion.

At least the section from 51 to 485 is being included in the tolled Monroe Bypass project, so that it can work a little bit in both directions, rather than just a mile or two at a time from downtown. Once they finish the project to Conference, it will only be 5 more miles to 51.

[RiverwoodCLT]

The way the NCDOT is doing Indenpendence Blvd. it will be 64 years before they get to I485 in Matthews. They are doing aprox. 1 mile+ every 8 years.

Edited February 11, 2008 by RiverwoodCLT

[Otto]

I really hope the DOT and whoever is in charge of doing something about 485 gets up off their duff and does it soon!

I had the unfortunate experience of having to go to Carolina Place Mall from Uptown around 6:30, 6:45 and sat on the bypass over 77 for 15 minutes. It was enough past "rush" hour that I thought traffic would not be as bad as it was.

As much as I kind of like the places around that mall, I am SERIOUSLY going to rethink going over in that direction at any point during the afternoon/evening.

This is ridiculous! If I were a real estate agent, I would strongly advise against anyone who I was trying to find a house for in looking in that general area. If it takes you an HOUR to go from Uptown to Pineville to get home, that is some serious time to be wasted each day. I feel for those that are stuck in it all the time.

Maybe we should bus in some of the powers that be in Raleight and let them sit there every afternoon for a week with a meeting they need to get to at Ballantyne or somewhere close by. Maybe that would give them proper motivation.

Sorry for the rant - but what a waste of time it was! And not to mention all of the pollution that gets pushed into our air with cars just sitting there day after day! Yikes!

You could probably cut your travel time by 2/3s using the light rail system. Just a suggestion! That's why there are alternative modes of transportation. However, the powers that be in regards to the Charlotte region just happen to be your Board of Transportation Member (Marion Cowell) in Charlotte, Barry Moose (Albemarle), and MUMPO. They are responsible for prioritizing funding for your Charlotte area projects. I am sure they are quite familiar with the situation in Charlotte. There just isn't enough money to go around....even if the equity formula changed. The I-485 widening is funded for construction in 2015. So is construction for the northeastern portion of I-485. The question remains, with the available money.....which is more important and to whom....improve Independence or widen I-485 in south Charlotte.....or widen I-85 to NC 73....or widen I-77 north of Huntersville....or construct the Monroe Bypass...or the Garden Parkway....or Providence? There is no way to satisfy everyone's individual transportation desire....especially in a time when transportation appropriation bills are only for around $300 for the entire country. Be mindful that the interstate system is 50 years old. The "US" highway system is much older. There are miles and miles of highways that just need to be maintained. So there is a balancing act of maintaining older roads, replacing over aged bridges, widening recently built (relatively speaking) roads, and constructing brand new facilities....and the commuter, truck driver, vacationer, soccer mom, swim and football dad (like myself), bus driver, and other road users are caught in the middle.

[ChiefJoJo]

You could probably cut your travel time by 2/3s using the light rail system. Just a suggestion! That's why there are alternative modes of transportation. However, the powers that be in regards to the Charlotte region just happen to be your Board of Transportation Member (Marion Cowell) in Charlotte, Barry Moose (Albemarle), and MUMPO. They are responsible for prioritizing funding for your Charlotte area projects. I am sure they are quite familiar with the situation in Charlotte. There just isn't enough money to go around....even if the equity formula changed. The I-485 widening is funded for construction in 2015. So is construction for the northeastern portion of I-485. The question remains, with the available money.....which is more important and to whom....improve Independence or widen I-485 in south Charlotte.....or widen I-85 to NC 73....or widen I-77 north of Huntersville....or construct the Monroe Bypass...or the Garden Parkway....or Providence? There is no way to satisfy everyone's individual transportation desire....especially in a time when transportation appropriation bills are only for around $300 for the entire country. Be mindful that the interstate system is 50 years old. The "US" highway system is much older. There are miles and miles of highways that just need to be maintained. So there is a balancing act of maintaining older roads, replacing over aged bridges, widening recently built (relatively speaking) roads, and constructing brand new facilities....and the commuter, truck driver, vacationer, soccer mom, swim and football dad (like myself), bus driver, and other road users are caught in the middle.

Just to clarify, the funds for I-485 widening and completion of 485 to the northeast are designated loop fund projects, which means they are funded completely separately from all those other projects, which are 'equity eligible' projects. The equity formula designates a certain amt of funds to the region (not enough, obviously) each year, but the loop funds are more complicated. Any loop project, in essence, competes with other loop-fund eligible projects around the state. So, if a project in Greensboro (say, I-85 Byp) or Asheville (I-26 connector) has it's plans designed and ready to be built first, it gets the funds. With cash flow issues (ie, spreading contract payments over several years), it can get tricky. It's not a very good system, but it's what we have. I'd suggest folks pay close attention to what the 2008 candidates for Governor have to say about transportation in NC, and consider voting for one that places transportation priorities based on a strategic, data-driven approach, rather than a somewhat ad hoc, political one.

[49er]

Does anyone else here think the long discussed Monroe bypass is a waste of money? What we're bypassing is a strip corridor that will eventually look as bad as Independence does in Charlotte. Why should it be limited access with interchanges only in Mecklenburg and transition to tired strip development and traffic jams as soon as you cross the County line? I guess its really political. Matthews has resigned itself to the fact that it will be bisected by an expressway and understands that much of the strip development will die off and be redeveloped. The Union County towns, Stallings, Indian Trail, Monroe etc. see 74 as their lifeblood for all future generations.

[dubone]

While it is a good point that the current land use on 74 in Union is not sustainable, I do think that it is much cheaper to build a bypass that is immediately a tollway. The tolls will help reduce some of the sprawl and the reduced cars on 74 not only will make it less desirable to be completely filled with retail, but might actually help it convert to different uses. But we as a city can't get choked in by our surrounding counties or else it will be more of a risk for sprawl. We need good interregional roads to connect the city out, but this time, we need to make sure it doesn't promote the kind of development that the original road did. NCDOT needs to stop building commercial arterials!

[Spartan]

But thats all they know how to build. Why change when they can do things the same? Its way too hard to try new things. Its good that nobody in history ever tried doing something different. Just think of the mess we'd be in! And really, if you think about it, metropolitan Charlotte is almost exactly like Greenville, NC, so the same policies should apply here as they do there. Its flawless logic, so don't waste your time trying to analyze it.

--

Seriously though, I think dubone hit on a key point there. We do need some regional urban roads. One of the larger problems, IMO, is that there are 4 regional MPO's in the area and there should really only be 2- one for Greater Charlotte (including what is currently MUMPO, Gaston MPO, and Cabarrus Rowan MPO) then RFATS in York County would remain separate.

[ChiefJoJo]

But thats all they know how to build. Why change when they can do things the same? Its way too hard to try new things. Its good that nobody in history ever tried doing something different. Just think of the mess we'd be in! And really, if you think about it, metropolitan Charlotte is almost exactly like Greenville, NC, so the same policies should apply here as they do there. Its flawless logic, so don't waste your time trying to analyze it.

--

Seriously though, I think dubone hit on a key point there. We do need some regional urban roads. One of the larger problems, IMO, is that there are 4 regional MPO's in the area and there should really only be 2- one for Greater Charlotte (including what is currently MUMPO, Gaston MPO, and Cabarrus Rowan MPO) then RFATS in York County would remain separate.

Agreed. Either NCDOT should adopt more contextual (both regional, rural, sub, urban) standards or the state should cede complete control to the cities counties to do as they choose. I would argue that for roads below Interstate and certain US highways, it makes much more sense for the local entity to design the road as they choose, since those classes tend to closely support (or not!) land use.

If I were state czar, I would give cede as much of the system to local control as possible, allow plenty of local funding options to support the needs, while preserving financial and design control of all the higher-order state and regional tier roadways (77, 85, 485, 74, etc) to maintain some level of thruput and consistency at municipality and county borders. The state could still collect data to support local planning efforts (GIS, etc).

On state freeways/expressways, I would set a statewide standard that limits freeways to 8-general purpose lanes... if demand exceeds that, transit and/or managed (HOV/HOT/truck) lanes would have to be employed. State projects would be funded based at least 90% on objective criteria.

I would also force all contiguous MPOs to merge to encourage better regional planning and cooperation, and give them some level of land use authority for larger, regional-scale developments (Concord Mills & Ballantyne, for example). That's right, one Charlotte MPO, Triad MPO, and Triangle MPO. It's rediculous that there are so many little fiefdoms everywhere and that politicians have this apparent fantasy that what Union Co does doesn't affect Mecklenburg and so on... a total no-brainer, and we should have done it ten years ago. Better planning is a must, especially with all of the issues we face related to sustainablility.

I'd also give out annual $MM grants to regions that evaluate (measure) how their planning efforts are meeting various regional/state/federal goals... reducing/slowing VMT growth, reducing carbon emissions, increasing transit usage, preserving open space, etc.

That's all for now.

[PlazaMidwoodGuy]

I read on the Triangle Traffic Congestion thread that, in an effort to reduce congestion, Raleigh is embarking on a project to overhaul its entire traffic signal network by 2011. That made me wonder if Charlotte has similar plans to do anything along those lines EVER. I've long complained that this city seems to go out of its way to clog up streets and gum up traffic with its ill-timed signals. Lights that stay green forever for traffic that isn't there, left turn arrows that go green whether or not any cars are even IN the left turn lane, OR a total lack of left turn arrows at intersections that need them - practically forcing left turning traffic to run a red light because they can only turn when oncoming traffic finally stops, lights outside of center city that seem to be on timers 24/7 regardless of traffic flow. The list goes on and on.

I think Charlotte could improve its air quality, help us all get better gas mileage and reduce the amount of time we lose sitting in traffic by doing a better job of timing and updating the signal system.

[PlazaMidwoodGuy]

Some more good news about NCDOT finally getting off its duff and doing something about Charlotte's dark interstates. Saturday's Observer detailed how the state plans to fix the burnt out lights along I-77 and I-85 throughout the county. This is in addition to the repairs that will be done to the I-277 loop, which were recently announced. The even better news is that the state isn't robbing Charlotte of road BUILDING money for these repairs the way it is for the I-277 lighting - the money will be coming from a maintenance fund, as it should. Apparently the first lights to be repaired are along I-77 at the Lasalle St. exit as early as next week. (As for myself, I'll believe it when I see the lights burning.) The article noted that, just as an example of the problem, there are at least 250 lights on I-77 between uptown and I-485. Only 63 of them are working, which means that 75% of them are not. Between Tyvola and Woodlawn Roads alone, only 9 of 53 lights are operable (83% burnt out)!

The article states that Barry Moose, the NCDOT division engineer that oversees Charlotte, got into a van with other DOT engineers back in November and drove on Mecklenburg's interstates at night. One of the engineers quoted Moose as saying he wanted to "see the problem for himself" and that he was "very surprised and very concerned" to see the number of lights that were out. WHAT??! This has been an ongoing problem since at least the 1990s and Charlotte has been very vocal about the issue, so just how in the world can ANY of this come as a surprise to Barry Moose or anyone else?

My jaw dropped even more when I read that the state doesn't even have a formal schedule for checking roadway lighting in Charlotte. Of course, they also mention that having our highway division's office way the heck out in Albemarle tends to mean we're out of sight, out of mind for DOT officials. (Who in the world decided that the middle of Stanly County was the best place to put the traffic division office for the state's largest metropolitan area?) In the Triangle, says the article, an annual inspection of highways is done that includes lighting. So, why isn't that the case here?? Furthermore, Triangle DOT traffic engineer Steve Johnson is quoted as saying that he doesn't remember a time when a large segment of a Raleigh-Durham area freeway was almost completely dark. For anyone who thinks that Charlotte isn't treated like the redheaded stepchild where roads and road maintenance are concerned, or that our sister cities in the Triangle don't get better service from the DOT, I think Mr. Johnson's quote pretty much blows a hole in their argument.

Edited February 18, 2008 by PlazaMidwoodGuy