CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A portion of Marshall Drive and Old Dowd Road on the northeast side of Charlotte Douglas International Airport is closing. The bridge and adjacent roadway are closing to make way for the airport's new runway and associated taxiways.
Starting Thursday, the Marshall Drive bridge over the Norfolk Southern train tracks between Wilkinson Boulevard and Old Dowd Road will close. The portion of Old Dowd Road between the new Airport Overlook Drive and the bridge closure will also be demolished.
The closure will impact traffic to the Charlotte Douglas International Airport Overlook as well as drivers connecting to Wilkinson Boulevard from Wallace Neel Road and West Boulevard.
The portion of Old Dowd Road and the airport's Josh Birmingham Parkway has already been closed.
A new bridge is being built over the railroad tracks closer to the airport overlook. Until that bridge opens, drivers can follow these detours:
- Visitors to the Airport Overlook:
- Motorists heading west on Wilkinson Blvd. (away from Uptown) will take a left on Sam Wilson Road and follow the detour signage, taking a left on Old Dowd Road and a left on Old Dowd Road at Wallace Neel Road.
- Drivers heading east on Wilkinson Boulevard (toward Uptown) will take a right on Sam Wilson Road and follow the detour signage, taking a left on Old Dowd Road and a left on Old Dowd Road at Wallace Neel Road.
- Residents and commuters who use Wallace Neel Road to Wilkinson Blvd:
- Motorists heading north on Wallace Neel Road will take a left on Old Dowd Road and a right on Sam Wilson Road to Wilkinson Blvd.
- Travelers wanting to get to Wallace Neel Road from Wilkinson Blvd. will take Sam Wilson Road to Old Dowd Road to Wallace Neel Road.
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The road closures are the next phase in the years-long Destination CLT airport expansion. The airport will reclaim the space and use it to construct a new runway and taxiway adjacent to the existing, center runway.