A stretch of Interstate 77 in Huntersville near Lake Norman has been ranked the 31st worst truck bottleneck in the United States. The American Transportation Research Institute released its annual “Top 100 Truck Bottlenecks” list this week. Three Charlotte-area highways made the list.
According to the Charlotte Observer, the Lake Norman section of I-77 averaged a peak commuter hour speed of 26.9 mph, according to the study. Interstate 85 at I-485 (West) ranked 43rd with speeds of 38 mph. I-77 at I-485 (South) came in 44th with 40.7 mph.
Peak commuting speeds got worse from 2024-25 to 2025-26 on all three Charlotte-area highways. The Lake Norman stretch slowed by 5.6%. I-85 at I-485 dropped 8%, and I-77 at I-485 declined 3.1%…