CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Work is expected to begin Monday to reopen underutilized bus lanes on Independence Boulevard in east Charlotte. The lanes have sat empty for about seven years. The work is expected to take 75 days and cost $1.37 million.
The lanes were closed in 2017 when construction began to replace the Hawthorne Lane overpass. The bridgework was needed to accommodate the expansion of the CityLYNX Gold Line streetcar. The original plan called for reopening the Independence Boulevard lanes as toll lanes, similar to those on Interstate 77 and the ones being constructed on Interstate 485.
The bus lanes sat dormant as the Hawthorne Lane bridge project faced extensive delays, including the use of the wrong girders and the wrong concrete. The Hawthorne Lane bridge finally opened in 2020.
“I have always wondered what those lanes are for and they're not being used," Jessica Ellis, a Charlottean, said. "I try to avoid [Independence Boulevard] at all costs."
Proposals to convert the bus lanes to toll lanes have been delayed due to North Carolina Department of Transportation "funding shortfalls," according to the city of Charlotte. The delay has left "the busway needing interim work to restore busway operation."
"Since future express lanes are still several years away, NCDOT has been working with Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) to assess what modifications are needed to make the bus lanes usable," a North Carolina Department of Transportation statement said Friday.
Once open, the approximately 5 miles of roadway will be open exclusively to CATS transit buses and emergency vehicles. The lanes are meant to encourage the use of transit. The corridor provides one lane inbound and another lane outbound between Uptown Charlotte and Wallace Road near Matthews. The lanes run continuously without entrances or exits except for a ramp for Albemarle Road.
In total, the city of Charlotte has approved $1.7 million to reopen the lanes. North Carolina Department of Transportation estimates the work will cost closer to $1.37 million. The remaining funds will be considered savings and will be available for other projects or revert to reserves.
In 2022, the city council approved an initial $750,000 for the project, which was then expected by the end of that year. Then last year, they approved another $950,000. The additional money came at the request of the NCDOT who said rising costs of materials and workers were to blame, according to the city of Charlotte.
Most of the construction will happen within the bus lanes, which are protected in the center of the roadway by concrete barriers between them and general traffic.
A spokesperson for the NCDOT previously told WCNC Charlotte, the goals of the project include:
- The opening of the bus lanes for outbound vehicles needs to be relocated about 330 feet. Crews will remove a barrier wall to make this happen. The center pier for the Hawthorne Street bridge currently obstructs part of the existing entrance.
- Approximately 650 feet of surface will be repaved.
- Work also includes storm drainage accommodations
The NCDOT said any necessary lane closures for the project will only occur between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m.
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In July, the NCDOT asked for contractor bids on the project, according to the city of Charlotte. When no bids were received, the NCDOT readvertised the bid in October. At that time, two bids were received. It was after those bids were received, that the city of Charlotte released the additional CATS Revenue Reserve Fund financing to NCDOT.
In December, NJR Group, Inc. of Albemarle, won the bid for the contract.
While the city is funding the work, the construction is being managed by the NCDOT.
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If those lanes were ever to be converted into toll lanes, the latest cost estimate puts that project around $105 million. Another nearly-billion dollars would be needed to expand those lanes all the way down to I-485 in Matthews. Currently, the existing bus lanes end two miles south of the interchange with Albemarle Road.
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