Rolling, Rolling, Rolling… Mecklenburg County Greenways are Really Rolling

In the world of transportation, greenways and trains wouldn’t seem to have much in common. But in Mecklenburg County, the analogy works — as construction and completion of greenway segments has picked up steam and has really gotten rolling. “The thing I’m most excited about is the momentum,” says Katie Lloyd, a Senior Planner at Mecklenburg County Park & Recreation Department and ex-officio member of the Partners for Parks board. To date, Mecklenburg County has completed almost 57 miles of trail, with another 8 miles set to open up in the next few months. A Master Plan from 1980 projected 79 miles of greenways by now, and a 2008 plan laid out 129 miles of greenways by 2018, so the recent push to upgrade and move forward with this many miles at once is both long overdue, and lightning-fast. “The thing we hear from the community is, ‘Can you do it faster?’” says Lloyd. Greenways have always ranked #1 on surveys of park priorities for residents, with the county saying 76% or more have listed greenways as their top choice. Now, more than ever, they’re being requested and used as residents look for fresh air and exercise during COVID restrictions. “Generally, people are out using them in record numbers during the pandemic, and we’re excited about building them and providing those connections,” says Lloyd. So while you were exploring your own favorite trail, some new connections have opened up:

• Barton Creek Greenway: 0.7 miles
• Walker Branch (to Smith Rd): 0.6 miles
• Plum Creek Greenway: 0.66 miles
• Little Sugar Creek Greenway: Replacing an existing trail through Huntingtowne Farms Park, replacing a bridge across the creek, and adding a connector into the Starmount neighborhood

Which brings up another point: Paths are important to residents, but connections to them are crucial to their use. “We get a lot of folks reaching out to us about projects,” says Lloyd. “People ask about their greenway and their neighborhood connections. The goal of our plan is to open access to all of the parks so people in adjoining neighborhoods can walk and bike to them.” County planners look at their best options, but as always, the devil is in the details. “The land piece is the hardest part,” says Lloyd. “Acquiring land is expensive and it takes a while.” Charlotte’s new 2040 development plan takes parks, greenways, and other forms of transportation into account like never before. It means looking ahead to where greenways will go as plans are made, instead of after roads or developments are built. That keeps land costs down. “We coordinate with the city any time there’s a rezoning, and look at future parks and greenways,” says Lloyd. Connections that bring separate greenway sections together get a lot of attention, too — especially those on the Cross Charlotte Trail, or XCLT. Right now, cyclists and pedestrians enjoy riding the XCLT/Little Sugar Creek Greenway from Midtown Square to Freedom Park, over some Shared Streets and on-street connectors, and then on to Park Road Shopping Center. A gap from that point to the next pick-up at Tyvola Road, known as the “Brandywine to Tyvlola” section, is in the works for early 2022. There’s even a cool 3D flyover of the path on the county’s site: https://charlottenc.gov/Projects/Pages/XCLTBrandywineTyvola.aspx From Tyvola, the Little Sugar Creek Greenway is smooth sailing all the way to I-485, with a new section reaching the Polk Birthplace Historic Site and the South Charlotte Connector very, very soon. That connection will allow access between the Little Sugar Creek Greenway/XCLT and another 5.5 miles of trails that are part of McMullen, Lower McAlpine, and Four Mile Creek Greenways. Can you imagine riding greenways from NoDa to Rea Road in one trip? Yeah, we’re smiling too. Here’s the current timetable, with links, from Lloyd:

• Little Sugar Creek Greenway/XCLT (7th to 10th) (completed by City): 0.5 miles: https://charlottenc.gov/Projects/Pages/XCLT7thto10th.aspx Projected for completion in late 2021

• Little Sugar Creek Greenway/XCLT (Brandywine to Tyvola) (completed by City): 1.5 miles: https://charlottenc.gov/Projects/Pages/XCLTBrandywineTyvola.aspx Projected for completion in late 2021/early 2022

• Little Sugar Creek Greenway/XCLT (Polk to State Line): 2.9 miles: https://charlottenc.gov/Projects/Pages/XCLTPolkToSC.aspx Projected for completion in mid 2022

Mecklenburg County’s greenway system is now being viewed as an important link to the region’s transportation system in the 2040 plan. Commuting never looked healthier, and connections to public transportation are getting easier than ever. Lloyd calls the next 100 miles of greenways “transformational” for the city. “That can really change how people move around – when you have a protected network separate from cars,” says Lloyd. “It changes how you move around the city.” So maybe the analogy about trains and greenways isn’t so far-fetched. With the Lynx light rail line being an important transportation mode for Charlotte’s future, and greenways designed as accessible connections to get to it, they’re both really rolling!