Charlotte I-77 toll update, Sun Drop cold case update. See today’s top stories

The Charlotte Observer’s top stories this Tuesday cover a major transportation reversal, a long-awaited cold case breakthrough and a guide to the city’s enduring dining scene.

Here are key takeaways:

• The Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization revoked the $3.2 billion funding agreement for the I-77 South toll lane project Wednesday night, ending a decades-long effort to add toll lanes on an 11-mile stretch from uptown to South Carolina. Charlotte City Council is now exploring alternatives, including a $300,000 study with UNC Charlotte on non-tolled options like HOV lanes and micro-transit.
• Concord police have arrested 43-year-old Johnny Steven Talbert of Port Angeles, Washington, in connection with the 2008 double murder at Sun Drop Bottling Company that killed office manager Donna Barnhardt and job applicant Darrell Noles. Talbert faces two counts of first-degree murder and one count of robbery after detectives reexamined evidence and pursued new leads in the nearly 18-year-old cold case.
• A new guide highlights 20 of Charlotte’s oldest restaurants still in operation, ranging from establishments dating to the 1930s through the 1970s. The list comes as longtime favorites such as Green’s Lunch, Zach’s Hamburgers and Mr. K’s have closed in recent years.

This report was produced with the assistance of a proprietary tool powered by artificial intelligence and using our own originally reported, written and published content. It was reviewed and edited by our journalists. To learn more about how The Charlotte Observer is using AI in our newsroom, see our policy here.