Consultants and other visitors at Wednesday's drop-in workshop at Cornelius Town Hall looked at maps of the proposed I-77 widening project. (David Boraks/CorneliusNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

CORNELIUS – Residents, businesspeople and local officials this week got a closeup look at several versions of a proposal to build high-occupancy toll lanes on I-77 to help relieve rush-hour congestion north of Charlotte.

At workshops in Cornelius Wednesday and Charlotte Thursday, NC Department of Transportation officials and consultants showed maps of the planned route and drawings of what toll lanes might look like. Read the full story

State Department of Transportation officials and regional planners will hold public information workshops in Cornelius Wednesday and in Charlotte Thursday on a proposal to convert High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes on I-77 north of Charlotte into High Occupancy/Toll (HOT) lanes. The workshop will look at four scenarios for the change, which would raise money to help pay for widening of the heavily congested stretch of interstate.

The first workshop runs Wednesday, May 9, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Cornelius Town Hall, 21445 Catawba Ave., Cornelius. The second will be Thursday, May 10, 4-7 p.m., at the N.C. DOT’s Traffic Management Center, 2327 Tipton Drive, off Statesville Avenue, Charlotte. Read the full story

The Red Line Task Force of the Metropolitan Transit Commission holds its monthly meeting Wednesday, April 25, from 3:30 to 5 p.m., at Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center, 600 E. 4th St., Room 266, Charlotte.

Wednesday’s agenda includes a wrap-up of the business plan review, an update on proposed new station criteria, and information about an upcoming meeting with Norfolk Southern Corp. Read the full story

The Lake Norman Transportation Commission, which includes representatives from area towns, will hold its monthly meeting Wednesday, 6 :30 p.m., at Huntersville Town Hall.

The agenda includes discussion of the organization’s name, a presentation by Huntersville transportation planner Bill Coxe on “Comprehensive Transportation Planning,” committee updates, and updates from the director on Red Line and I-77 widening. Read the full story

John Woods

John Woods is chair of the Metropolitan Transit Commission’s Red Line Task Force and mayor of Davidson.

By JOHN WOODS

Everyone, please take a deep breath! There has been a great deal of discussion, and misinformation, regarding the Red Line Regional Rail Project, and I would like to set the record straight on several issues.

Let’s first remember that we are not debating whether to implement the Red Line. We are instead working together on how and when to bring this project to life. Our communities have twice voted in support of transit, and our citizens continue to voice their support for bringing passenger rail to the North Corridor. So now we are doing the hard work: Figuring out the details of how to fund this initiative and make it a reality. Read the full story

When completed in 2014, the project will link I-77 north of Charlotte with I-85 northeast of Charlotte. (NC DOT map)

By JULIE ROSE
WFAE

Construction crews are well on the way to completing one of the most long-awaited road projects in the Charlotte-region. By the end of 2014, I-485 will finally offer drivers a continuous loop around Mecklenburg County. Read the full story

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

Consultants working on the proposed Red Line Regional Rail Project said Wednesday they’ll revise a key section of the financing plan to ease the potential burden on small businesses and property owners along the rail line.

They’re talking about two major changes in the $452 million plan: 1) reducing the assessments on properties that house small businesses; and 2) delaying assessments until the rail line is actually running. Consultants are planning other revisions as well:  On Wednesday, they also said that owners who rent out detached single-family homes in residential neighborhoods won’t have to pay the assessments. Read the full story

Consultant Mark Briggs explained the rail line financing plan Tuesday. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

Davidson residents and elected officials at a public hearing on Tuesday quizzed consultants and offered their opinions about the proposed Red Line Regional Rail Project between Mooresville and Charlotte. Some wondered about plans to raise money through special tax districts, and about the business reasons for pitching the project as both a freight and commuter line. Others worried how the system might affect Davidson traffic and affordable housing.

About 50 people including town staff filled the Town Hall board room for the meeting. Speakers came from throughout town, and their questions and comments ranged from deep suspicion to support of the $452 million rail project. Read the full story