February 2026 Update:

On February 4, 2026, NCDOT announced that, following community engagement, it would move forward with an elevated highway design for I-77 South, citing it as the least impactful option. With an RFP scheduled for release on March 13, this project is advancing rapidly — and that urgency makes community action more critical than ever. Our opposition remains firm.

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We, the undersigned, strongly oppose NCDOT’s proposed I-77 South Toll Lanes project and urge you to stand with us.

What NCDOT Is Proposing
NCDOT plans to widen roughly 11 miles of I-77 from the South Carolina line to I-277 by adding two tolled express lanes in each direction, rebuilding interchanges, and, in some segments, constructing elevated roadway above the existing interstate. The project would rely on a public-private partnership, allowing a private operator to set dynamic toll prices — the same model used on I-77 North, where tolls have reached unaffordable levels for many families.

Repeating Historic and Racial Harm
I-77 already cut through nearly every historically Black neighborhood along its path — from Biddleville, McCrorey Heights, and the Historic West End to Wilmore, West Boulevard, and South Tryon. South of Uptown, the proposed widening would again impact Black and historically Black communities including Brookhill Village, Reid Park, Revolution Park, Clanton Park, and the West Boulevard corridor — areas that already bear the scars of displacement and disinvestment. Further south, the project extends into the Nations Ford area and surrounding Southwest Charlotte neighborhoods, where residents face the same threats of increased noise, pollution, and disruption. 

Rather than repairing these harms, the project would deepen them.

Equity, Environment, and Public Health
This project creates a two-tier transportation system: premium lanes for those who can afford them, while everyone else remains stuck in congested “free” lanes that NCDOT’s own analysis shows will worsen over time. That is not transportation equity.

The project would affect at least 13 interchanges, multiple grade separations, parks, greenways, and housing — including taking land from Frazier Park and effectively blocking the planned Irwin Creek Greenway extension through McCrorey Heights. It would also push additional highway infrastructure into Pinewood Cemetery, a sacred burial ground for Black Charlotteans that was already desecrated when I-77 was first built.

Vehicle emissions are the largest source of air pollution in Mecklenburg County. Communities along this corridor already experience elevated exposure to NO₂, PM₂.₅, and diesel exhaust, and are flagged as disadvantaged by EPA EJScreen and the Charlotte Priority Climate Action Plan. Adding lanes and increasing traffic will worsen pollution next to homes, parks, schools, and churches — while undermining Charlotte’s commitment to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions 72% by 2035 and reach net-zero by 2050.

It Won’t Fix Congestion
Decades of research show that highway widening does not deliver lasting congestion relief due to induced demand. Studies from UC Davis, the Federal Highway Administration, and the Congressional Research Service all find that new lanes quickly fill with new traffic. Locally, traffic volumes have already increased following recent lane additions on I-485 — reinforcing this well-documented pattern.

The likely outcome of I-77 South is more cars, more congestion, and higher costs — with only those who can afford tolls seeing short-term benefits.

A Better Path Forward
The most effective way to move more people in this corridor is to invest in frequent, reliable transit — including dedicated bus lanes on I-77, 15-minute service on parallel corridors, safe and accessible bus stops, and land-use policies that shorten trips. NCDOT’s current plan offers no state-funded transit alternative, placing the burden on local residents instead.

Other ideas to consider include:

• Freight management strategies (off-peak freight incentives, better rail integration) to reduce truck congestion without widening highways
• Targeted operational fixes (ramp metering, speed harmonization, incident-response upgrades) that improve flow without adding lanes
• Congestion pricing paired with transit investment (if pricing is used at all, revenue should be legally dedicated to transit, air-quality mitigation, and community reinvestment — not private profit)Freeway cap / green deck feasibility study for I-77 through the West End and Pinewood Cemetery area
• Federal Reconnecting Communities grants as a funding pathway instead of toll-backed P3s
• Land-use and zoning reforms along transit corridors to reduce trip lengths and car dependence

Our Request to NCDOT and Charlotte City Council:
For reasons of racial justice, environmental health, fiscal responsibility, and equity, we ask that you:

Unequivocally oppose the widening of I-77 South. No mitigation or redesign can justify further harm to these communities.
Champion restoration and reconnection instead. Cities across the country are repairing freeway damage through projects like ReConnect Rondo (St. Paul), Albina Vision (Portland), and freeway caps in Austin and Denver. Charlotte has already acknowledged this harm through its own Reconnecting the West End initiative. It is time to pursue healing, not further division.

We want reconnection — not another generation of displacement.