Toll lanes protest planned Friday in Cornelius

Opponents of planned Interstate 77 toll lanes from Charlotte to Mooresville will gather at the I-77 Exit 28 bridge in Cornelius from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Friday to protest the $655 million project.

Members of Widen I-77, a Lake Norman-area citizens group fighting the project, are encouraging anyone concerned about the planned lanes to attend the protest.

The project will add two toll lanes northbound and southbound on I-77 from the Brookshire Freeway in Charlotte to Exit 28 in Cornelius. It will add one toll lane in each direction from Exit 28 to Mooresville Exit 36.

Spain-based Cintra US will pay most of the costs and, for 50 years, will maintain and operate the lanes while collecting most of the toll revenue.

The plan is for construction to start this summer and finish by late 2018.

This story was originally published April 30, 2015 at 10:11 AM with the headline "Toll lanes protest planned Friday in Cornelius."