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Tanner In The Morning

Reopening Bus Lanes In Charlotte Might Cost More Than You Think

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Author Rob Tanner

WCNC Charlotte recently reported that reopening bus lanes that currently exist on Independence Boulevard in east Charlotte will cost a lot more than most people would expect.

Currently the price tag for reopening the bus lanes is $1.7 million. The city of Charlotte says that the price of this operation is so high due to rising material and worker cost.

These already existing lanes were closed in 2017. This was done when the work to the Hawthrone Street overpass started to help with the CityLYNX Gold Line streetcar expansion. Originally, Independence Boulevard lanes were going to be reopened as toll lanes.

Due to some large delays in the Hawthorne Street bridge project, the roads sat unused for a long period of time. It took three years for the bridge to open in 2020.

The proposal for the lanes to be turned into toll lanes is currently delayed due to funding shortages in the North Carolina Department of Transportation.

There was a city council meeting on Monday night where the council members voted to send the North Carolina Department of Transportation $950,000 to restore these roads.

The lanes would be used for both buses and emergency vehicles and the project total is $1.7 million.

This project is so expensive for many reasons. The first reason is because the bus lanes opening for outbound vehicles will need too be relocated about 330 feet. To make matters more complicated the work crew will need to remove a barrier wall to do this.

Another reason this project is so expensive is because around 650 feet worth of surface on the road will need to be repaved. The cost also includes storm drainage accommodations that will need to be put in.

These lanes are predicted to reopen in the first half of 2024.

 

Data Shows North Carolina Has The Most Dangerous Rural Roads In America

Driving these days can be a terrifying experience. Especially in Charlotte, it seems the drivers get worse and more aggressive by the day and traffic laws are a mere suggestion. But it’s actually the rural roads that are of concern in North Carolina. New research by Florida Personal Injury Lawyers Anidjar & Levine looked at 10 years’ worth of data including the number of annual miles driven on rural roads and the number of rural road accidents for each state. They used this data to determine which states had the highest occurrence of rural crashes. And it’s North Carolina that has the most dangerous rural roads in America.

That’s right North Carolina ranked first on this list. And that’s not something to celebrate. The state has 70.45 accidents for every billion miles driven. Another interesting statistic is that 44.3% of these crashes occur on roads with a 55 mph speed limit. That’s 64.7% higher than the national average which is 26.9%. In some ways, this makes sense as there are a lot of rural roads in North Carolina. But when you consider the sheer size of other states it is a little crazy that we topped the list.

To create this list the researchers at Anidjar & Levine gathered data from 2012-2021 from agencies including NCDOT, FARS, the U.S. Census Bureau, and FHWA. The rural road accident rate was calculated by dividing the annual miles driven on rural roads by the number of vehicles involved in rural road accidents for each state. Keep reading below to see the top five states with the most dangerous roads in America. North Carolina isn’t the only Carolina in the top 5 either. Stay safe out there North Carolina. Thanks to our friends at Journo Research for sharing this research with us.

Top 5 Most Dangerous Rural Roads In America

 

  • 5. Mississippi

    Welcome to Mississippi sign at the state border

    Rural crashes per billion miles driven: 60.37

    10  year change: 38.4%

  • 4. South Carolina

    A welcome sign at the South Carolina state line.

    Rural crashes per billion miles driven: 63.6

    10  year change: -6.3%

  • 3. West Virginia

    View of road sign

    Rural crashes per billion miles driven: 67.18

    10  year change: -33.6%

  • 2. Connecticut

    Welcome to Connecticut sign on a gray cloudy day with road construction signs

    Rural crashes per billion miles driven: 68.74

    10  year change: -39.0%

  • 1. North Carolina

    Welcome to North Carolina Sign

    Rural crashes per billion miles driven: 70.45

    10  year change: -11.2%

Country 103.7’s funniest guy in town is none other than Rob Tanner with Tanner in the Morning! Rob Tanner has been the host of WSOC-FM's Tanner in the Morning Show in Charlotte, NC for 20 years. The show was named the 2018 ACM Major Market Personalities of the Year. He is well-versed in all topics in country music. Tanner also is a sports junkie who writes about any Carolina sports team, and he and his wife Missy spend most of their down exploring theme parks. He writes Disney insider content.

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