Topic

Transportation

Roads, transit, tolls, and regional transportation policy across Charlotte and the metro.

Harrington Vetoes Council's Six-Week Review of the CLT Airline Lease

Charlotte City Council voted Monday to take six weeks to review the airport's new airline lease and decide Nov. 23. Mayor Rob Harrington vetoed it on the spot.

Jack Beckett·Oct 13, 2026

An American Eagle regional jet taxis at Charlotte Douglas International Airport with uptown Charlotte's skyline behind it, beside the words: Vetoed. Council voted to take six weeks. The mayor said no.

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Council Gets First Public Look at CLT's Airline Lease

Charlotte City Council gets its first public presentation Monday on the airport's proposed new lease with five airlines. Its cost, its length and what the airlines would pay have not been made public.

Jack Beckett·Oct 10, 2026

An American Eagle regional jet taxis at Charlotte Douglas International Airport with uptown Charlotte's skyline behind it. Card text: Council's first look at the airport's airline lease. Its cost, its length and what the airlines would pay are not yet public.

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Charlotte Transit Adds $2.20 On-Demand Van Rides in West Charlotte

CATS Micro, the transit system's on-demand shared van service, started a new zone around Wilkinson Boulevard and West Boulevard on Oct. 5. Rides cost $2.20 and are booked by app or phone.

Jack Beckett·Oct 9, 2026

A white and blue CATS Micro van, beside text reading $2.20, a ride, booked from your phone, every day 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

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A Regional Survey Asks Where Roads Feel Unsafe, and It Closes Oct. 25

More than 2,900 people have been killed or seriously injured on Charlotte-area roads since 2021, the city says. A regional survey asking where roads feel unsafe closes Oct. 25.

Jack Beckett·Oct 9, 2026

A NoDa street with traffic signals and a sign for the 36th Street station, beside text reading 2,900 plus killed or seriously injured since 2021, tell planners where the roads feel unsafe

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What Charlotte Got in Writing on I-77

The 12-page agreement behind the I-77 South toll lanes commits at least $300 million to west Charlotte and makes the private developer responsible for putting it up.

Jack Beckett·Oct 8, 2026

Typographic navy card with faint highway lane lines receding into the distance. Text reads: I-77 South toll lanes, city and NCDOT agreement, Sept. 22, 2026. $300M for west Charlotte, now in writing. Only the city can hold the state to it. The neighborhoods cannot.

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Facing a $69.5 Million State Bill, CRTPO Brings Back the I-77 South Toll Lanes. Two Mayors Resign From the Board.

The regional transportation board reinstated the $4.3 billion I-77 South toll lane project Wednesday, with a $69.5 million state bill hanging over any town that kept voting no.

Jack Beckett·Sep 24, 2026

Editorial card on a dark navy field with faint converging highway lane stripes, reading $69.5M and The toll lanes are back, with the line: facing the state's bill for voting no, the regional board reversed itself; two mayors resigned from it.

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Charlotte's I-77 Bill Is $69,577,547.67

The state's claim against Charlotte for walking away from the I-77 South toll lanes is $69,577,547.67, and the money would come out of the fund the city has already programmed for its next affordable…

Jack Beckett·Sep 15, 2026

Editorial card reading Sept. 21, with the state's I-77 claim of $69,577,547.67 and Charlotte's share given as $59 million to $69 million, noting the city has not explained how a 31 percent share produces a $59 million floor

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Five Weeks Out, Charlotte Hasn't Moved on I-77, and Board Members Are Disputing the $60 Million

At its last meeting before the September 23 reinstatement vote, CRTPO heard that Charlotte's position on the I-77 South toll lanes is unchanged, that the alternatives analysis cannot finish in time…

Jack Beckett·Aug 26, 2026

Editorial card reading Sept. 23, with the disputed I-77 repayment figures: 60 million dollars demanded by the law over 32 million dollars spent so far per the county's account

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The Study Charlotte Wanted on I-77 Takes Five Months. Its Deadline Is in Eight Weeks.

Charlotte has until October 5 to reverse itself on the I-77 South toll lanes or absorb a penalty the legislature wrote in July: a state bill the city attorney puts at $64 million, a freeze on its…

Jack Beckett·Aug 5, 2026

An illustrated news graphic shows an October 5 deadline for Charlotte to decide on I-77 South toll lanes, with clocks, a calendar, a highway map and a $64 million penalty folder.

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North Carolina's Budget Gives Charlotte a Choice: Revive the I-77 Toll Lanes, or Repay $64 Million

The regional board that killed the I-77 South toll lanes in May will vote September 23 on bringing them back, under a state budget that told the governments that opposed them to reinstate the project…

Jack Beckett·Jul 16, 2026

An illustration shows an I-77 South toll lanes highway sign and a construction barricade reading "Deadline: 90 days, $64 million to be repaid" beside text about a September 23 vote.

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Raleigh Wants Charlotte to Repay $60 Million for Killing the I-77 Toll Lanes

A bill in Raleigh, written by Sen. Vickie Sawyer, would require the Charlotte-area governments that voted to kill the I-77 South toll lanes in May to repay the state an estimated $60 million, freeze…

Jack Beckett·Jun 17, 2026

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The I-77 South Toll Lane Project Is Effectively Dead

CRTPO voted May 20 to withdraw support for the I-77 South toll lanes, all but ending a $3.2 billion expansion, removing it from the state's ten-year construction plan, and putting an estimated $700…

Jack Beckett·May 23, 2026

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How CRTPO Works — and Why Charlotte's Vote Carries So Much Weight

One regional board ended a multibillion-dollar state project. Here is what CRTPO is, how its weighted vote works, and why Charlotte's bloc is large enough to decide the outcome.

Jack Beckett·May 23, 2026

Explainer on how the CRTPO regional transportation board and its weighted vote work