Should I-77 go underground?
Building a tunnel could allow widening without harming neighborhoods
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Residents and elected officials push NCDOT to examine possibility of I-77 tunnel near uptown; State sounds wary of cost — but could new sales tax money help?
by Steve Harrison
WFAE
More than 20 neighborhood leaders and activists this week urged the N.C. Department of Transportation to kill any plan to widen Interstate 77 in south Charlotte.
They also pushed in a letter for the state to “champion a new vision for restoration and reconnection” by burying parts of the existing highway underground and placing a concrete cap over the traffic lanes. That would reconnect west side neighborhoods with uptown, more than 50 years after I-77 was first built.
They urged DOT to consider projects like Austin’s proposed “cap and stitch” over Interstate 35 near downtown, which aims to replace a canyon of traffic with parks and greenways.
The Texas project will add express toll lanes (just like what is proposed in Charlotte) but will lower the highway below-grade for about three miles. The Texas Department of Transportation will then place a concrete cap over the sunken Interstate and build atop that.
Boston and Seattle also have done this. It’s a reversal of the interstate-building boom of decades past that brought highways through urban centers.
“We urge you to work with us to initiate similar reconnection and restorative projects here in Charlotte, not further division,” according to the letter, which was signed by neighborhood leaders from McCrorey Heights, Biddleville-Smallwood, Washington Heights and Seversville, among others.
I-77 is one of the state’s most congested highways, and the DOT wants to add two express toll lanes in each direction from uptown to the South Carolina line. This issue of Transit Time will look at whether it’s financially feasible to “cap and cover” in Charlotte, and whether there’s a design through uptown that could both expand the highway and lessen the impact to nearby residents.
What the DOT says
The DOT appears wary of the idea of placing part of I-77 below ground — either by tunnel or “cap and cover.”
“The I-77 South Express Lanes project is the state’s most expensive and complex transportation project to date at $3.2 billion and 11 miles long,” the state said in a statement. “Based on the comparative analysis, we know that any substantial cost increase could make the project infeasible.”
The DOT noted that the Seattle Viaduct Tunnel finished in 2019 was only about two miles long — and cost $3.35 billion. It also said that going underground comes with increased risks and uncertainty during construction.
The state’s plan for I-77 is to hire a private contractor to build and maintain the lanes. Most of the construction costs for the highway would be paid back by toll revenue collected for decades, which was also the financial model for the toll lanes on I-77 in north Mecklenburg.
Adding a “cap and cover” project for roughly two miles could scare away a private developer who doesn’t believe there is enough toll revenue to cover the additional costs.
In addition, the state is financially strapped because it must spend billions repairing washed-out roads and highways after Hurricane Helene.
What about money from the sales tax?
But local leaders have access to a new pot of money: Mecklenburg County voters last month approved a one-percentage point increase in the sales tax to raise nearly $20 billion over 30 years.
Forty percent of that money — roughly $8 billion — must be spent on “roadway systems,” with most of that money controlled by the Charlotte City Council. It appears I-77 would qualify for those funds.
When asked about the city of Charlotte helping to offset the higher costs of going below ground, the DOT said: “The City of Charlotte is already a partner on this project, as NCDOT is delivering it at (the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization’s) request. When considering a theoretical design like a tunnel, all factors including any funding gaps would need to be resolved, and the Department is not aware of additional funding for this project.”
In Austin, the city and the University of Texas are paying for the cost of the concrete caps, which are estimated at $470 million. The DOT is paying for the cost of placing the highway below grade.
Here is what I-35 near downtown Austin looks like today:
Here is what I-35 would look like after “cap and stitch”:
During a Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization meeting last month, Sean Langley, president of the McCrorey Heights Neighborhood Association and others implored the organization to change course and consider a tunnel or a “cap and cover.”
Mecklenburg Commissioner Leigh Altman said in the meeting that she and other Commissioners want to “signal that this matters to us collectively.”
She added: “We will stay engaged, we will watch the process closely, and we will advocate so that every need, every voice is addressed.”
When contacted by Transit Time/WFAE about the possibility of using local dollars to make the “cap and cover” feasible, Altman wrote: “I have asked NC DOT to directly address some of the ideas circulating in the community for feasibility. I think receiving that information in a public setting at CRTPO will be helpful for everybody, and I hope they will do so.”
Transit Time asked again about whether she would be willing to use local dollars from the transportation sales tax to make the project feasible.
Altman did not respond.
In an interview with WFAE, Langley said he’s concerned that elected officials aren’t committed to finding a solution. He said he supports using transportation sales tax dollars to advance the project.
“I was at a City Council meeting recently, and I couldn’t count how many times they mentioned equity in the work they do. County commission — same thing,” Langley said. “This is their time where they could actually step up and match their words with their actions.”
The DOT has presented two options for the express toll lanes through uptown.
The first is to build the entire project at-grade, which would have the largest impact on homes and neighborhoods. The second option is to build some of the toll lanes as bridges, which would mean a narrower footprint for the expanded interstate.
Charlotte City Council member Malcolm Graham represents some impacted neighborhoods. He said the two options presented are not acceptable. He said he would be willing to consider a tunnel or another below-ground option and he wants the DOT to hold more public meetings to look at all options.
But when asked whether he would be OK with using money from the transportation sales tax to help pay for the project, Malcolm said no. He said that money is already dedicated to the city’s “Strategic Investment Areas” for building sidewalks, bike lanes, turn lanes, streetlighting and some new road capacity.
Tax details
Sixty percent of the money from the transportation sales tax is dedicated to transit, and will be managed by the new Metropolitan Public Transportation Authority. That money can’t be used for I-77.
The road money is different. Here’s why: Transit systems require a much bigger amount of ongoing money to maintain and operate. Highways also have a big upfront cost, but their ongoing maintenance costs are much lower. The sales tax doesn’t sunset. So spending $500 million or $1 billion on I-77 would delay other projects like sidewalks, streetlights and turn lanes — but it wouldn’t eliminate them. Future revenue from the sales tax could pay for those projects after the cap-and-cover.
Some residents would undoubtedly see a “cap-and-cover” plan for I-77 as wasteful. After all, the highway has been there for 50 years. Why spend hundreds of millions of dollars to change it now?
And there are big engineering challenges to a cap and cover: I-77 today goes over Trade Street, for instance. And the interchanges with the Brookshire and Belk freeways have a massive footprint. Can those also be placed underground?
On the other hand, the proposed widening project is a huge investment — and if the state is ready to spend more than $3 billion on it, why not spend another $1 billion to build an arguably much better version? The highway won’t be improved again for decades. This is likely the last chance in at least two generations to reconnect the west side to uptown.
Shannon Binns of the group Sustain Charlotte wants the DOT to scrap the highway expansion completely.
But he said his group would support an effort to place the highway below-grade. Binns didn’t rule out spending local sales tax dollars, but he said the DOT would need to pay for most of the extra cost.
“The role of county sales-tax dollars would really depend on the scale of the state’s commitment and on the other transportation needs the county must fund,” he said. “Local taxpayers are already carrying a heavy load to improve roads across Mecklenburg, and the one-cent sales tax was designed to address urgent local safety and mobility priorities. We need strong state and federal partnership here, especially given Mecklenburg residents are the largest contributors to North Carolina’s overall tax base.”
CRPTO makes the final decision
The final decision for the project isn’t made by the DOT. It’s made by the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization, of which the city of Charlotte has roughly 45% of the vote. In other words, if the city and Mecklenburg County decide on a course of action, it’s almost certain to happen.
If the City Council decides to kill the entire project, it likely can.
If it wants to do a “cap and cover” through uptown, it can also direct the DOT to do that.
But based on the DOT’s statements, the state will likely tell the city of Charlotte and CRPTO members that a “cap and cover” isn’t financially feasible.
That leaves one big question: Will city leaders be willing to spend transportation sales tax dollars to make it happen?
Steve Harrison is a reporter with WFAE, Charlotte’s NPR news source. Reach him at sharrison@wfae.org.
Related Ledger/Transit Time articles:
“NCDOT wants new I-77 lanes to maximize traffic flow, not money” (Nov. 20)
“Charlotte’s westside pushes back on I-77 toll lane expansion” (Nov. 12)
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Your turn: Poll on widening I-77 between uptown and S.C. line
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Louisville did it to preserve open acreage in undeveloped area. How much more important to take care for a community
that will be further split? http://www.eastendtunnel.com/
If any roads are to be in tunnels or otherwise sub-grade, the northern limb of I-277 should be first in line. The development of South End was possible and desirable because of the sub-grade placement of the southern limb of I-277 for a relatively short distance. The northern limb is a powerful and detrimental boundary between uptown and neighborhoods to the north. Perhaps that was intentional. Unfortunately, development northward will forever be stunted where I-277 is elevated.