Getting Here, Getting Around

Transportation has always been integral to Charlotte. In its earliest days, Charlotte was a trading crossroads for settlers and Native Americans. Later, it developed into a railroad hub for the South’s burgeoning textile industry. In the 1920s, Wilkinson Boulevard became the state’s first four-lane paved highway. A few decades later, construction of Interstates 77 and 85, which intersect just northwest of the center city, made the Queen City a hub for trucking companies like Roadway, Overnight, Yellow Freight and Thurston Motor Lines. In the 1980s, Charlotte/Douglas Airport evolved into a major player for air travelers, thanks in large part to the hub established by homegrown Piedmont Airlines, later purchased by US Airways.

Getting around in Charlotte was somewhat of a struggle in the 1980s and 1990s as the city’s growth outpaced its ability to provide transportation infrastructure. However, Queen City leaders and state leaders have rallied in the last two decades to balance the scales. Both Interstates have been widened and I-77 features the state’s first High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes. A third runway was recently added to Charlotte/Douglas Airport, which is among the top 15 in the nation in terms of air passengers. Our first light rail line emerged in late 2007, the I-485 loop is more than three-fourths complete and a recent Federal grant promises to bring a third daily Amtrak route between Charlotte and Raleigh.

For visitors and newcomers, transportation options are many and there is an ample supply of roads, although they’re admittedly a bit confusing. With the exception of Uptown, Charlotte’s street system is not designed in the traditional grid manner. Roads meander, make sharp turns, change names and often don’t run directly east-west or north-south.

A thorough read of this chapter will get you up to speed on Queen City transportation.