NC state government eyeing potential buyout for I-77 toll lane project contract

CORNELIUS, N.C. — Last week, Channel 9 revealed a provision in the North Carolina budget that would give lawmakers a bigger role in deciding the fate of the I-77 toll lane project. Now, there is a new option for the state to potentially buyout the contract.

The decision to place the fate of the I-77 toll project in the hand’s of the state did not settle well with the community.

State Senator Jeff Tarte said he is trying to reassure critics that the move is not a “power grab.”

“Is this a way to gain control over the ultimate decision,” Tarte said. “No. We won’t have the ultimate decision. This rests completely in the Governor’s Office and NCDOT.”

Throughout this process, people have been dealing with gridlock in I-77 construction, the possibility of expensive tolls and a contract with a Spain based company called “Cintra” that most are not happy about and that Tarte called a “bad deal.”

Tarte said ideas are being tossed around in Raleigh such as buying the contract out. He was unaware of the cost at this time, but he said the General Assembly will only decide how to pay for the changes.

"The really big part is taking and shifting responsibility of operating those lanes back from Spain and bringing them back to North Carolina where it belongs."

Tarte said if there is not a decision by September, he is unsure of when the controversy will end.

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