CHARLOTTE -- After years of planning, a double-roundabout intersection opened at Interstate 485 and Oakdale Road in north Charlotte.
The NC Department of Transportation said in a release that the project, which was initiated in 2011, cost $4.8 million and was awarded in July 2016.
Crews uncovered new signage Sunday, and put finishing touches on road paint markings.
The NCDOT said in a press release:
"The opening will improve traffic flow in the area and will relieve congestion at the interchange of I-485 and N.C. 16. In 1999, the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization adopted a study on the I-485interchanges, recommending not to complete the ramps at Oakdale Road until 75 percent of the land within a half-mile radius was developed. The department had previously done some grading work on the ramps when that section of I-485 was under construction. When development around the area didn’t progress, NCDOT and the City of Charlotte began working together in 2011 to move forward with opening the interchange."