I Visited the World Capital of Sprawl, and I Have Thoughts

[@bobbyswanson3498]

out of all places, charlotte is essentially what got me into urbanism. it was the furthest place i had been by myself and the light rail was the first public transit i had used and it completely changed my mind on cities. it kind of goes to show how little urbanism there is for people to see here but also how important just the slightest bit of urbanism can be in changing peoples minds

[@nitehawk86]

I visited Charlotte specifically because there were like 10 craft breweries about a block away from the Blue Line. If you take the city as "in transition with a promising future" it really is great. My only concern is that the city sprawl is growing faster than the transit system is.

[@CityNerd]

That's what I'm saying! Just give them a taste of the good stuff, they'll be back for more

[@jimdake6632]

Why change minds? The city of Charlotte and its burbs are growing great guns because that’s what the people who live and move there want.

[@Crockdaddy1074]

@@nitehawk86 Charlotte when I Moved there for work back in 2017 I lived right off the Blue line. I biked, walked to work daily to Duke Energy. The ironies is for me Charlotte and my personal experience got me into urbanism as my first real taste (used to go to NY for work periodically but didn't live there). I miss living away from a bike / walk / rail ride to work having had to move back to the outer burbs in STL ... and I counted well over 10 craft breweries were within EZ biking distance. I was almost a dream come true. I didn't miss driving at all.

[@bobbyswanson3498]

@@jimdake6632 no it’s because that what the zoning codes demand

[@alanthefisher]

It was great to meet you at the conference! I totally agree that even though Charlotte is sprawling there's a lot of good progress in the right direction for building better neighborhoods there.

[@dcdude345]

damn wish I knew you were in town would have loved to try and meet up :(

[@CityNerd]

Yeah, there better be putt-putt golf at CityTuberFest 2023!

[@StLouis-yu9iz]

@@CityNerd Magic Mini Golf on the Delmar Loop (off a trolley line) should be open by then, as will Top Golf. Union station also has a dinky lil course. lol Have it in the Lou next year ;P

[@starrwulfe]

@@StLouis-yu9iz I'll head back home for that. I can't wait to see what's in the Loop when I get back in a few weeks. I also hear Washington from Downtown to Midtown is nice, Soulard is a bit overpriced, Tower Grove is where Soulard was 4 years ago now, and there's even some density and walkability happening to the Mid-County areas like Maplewood, Richmond Heights and Clayton... (not Metrolink coincidence though right?)

[@StLouis-yu9iz]

@@starrwulfe Spot on with all of this! haha Did you know we are going to be getting a North/South line finally! Should start construction in a few years and will be on a Jefferson Av. alignment. :]

[@adanactnomew7085]

As a Canadian, Charlotte is a weird city because it has zero international presence. It's so strange because it's a city you never heard anything about, despite it's quite large size. The average Canadian might have some lose but there conceptions of comparabily sized cities like San Diego, Austin, Detroit or Baltimore, but Charlotte is just a blank space honestly. I wonder if anyone else feels the same way, whether you are from the US or not.

[@BrandonJXN2]

I always view Charlotte as diet Atlanta. Seriously the only thing I know about it are the Panthers and the Hornets.

[@cheef825]

Truly the Winnipeg of the us

[@ztl2505]

It’s like the Indianapolis of the south. Technically has a ton of people but doesn’t really feel like it makes much impact on broader national culture.

[@sayimjustadreamer]

@@ztl2505 Which is interesting because it's (arguably) the banking capital of the US... headquarters of both Bank of America and Truist and a major corporate center for Wells Fargo and other banks

[@spartan117zm]

@@sayimjustadreamer just about to say that myself. I think whether or not you know much about Charlotte heavily depends on which industry you’re in. Banking and energy have a huge presence here, Siemens has a big presence here, etc. The National Whitewater Center and Carowinds are two well known recreation spots. I’ve met many people across the US (and even a few internationally) who know of Charlotte and have always commented that it’s such a nice area.

[@williamburkholder769]

I lived there for 35 years. In 1979, when I moved there for work, I said Charlotte was a sprawling mess. It is the L.A. of the South in so many ways. The reason it sprawls is, everyone with a little bit of money wants a neighborhood with cul-de-sacs and half-acre or larger lots. NC is the land of the American Dream for a lot of people. Charlotte is a modern American boom town that EXPLODED in population from the mid-1960s until now. We were there today, to visit my wife's elderly Mom, and traffic was gridlocked. What a surprise. But ALL of Piedmont NC is a giant sprawl. Even more sprawled than Metrolina (The correct name for Charlotte and all of the surrounding towns), is the Piedmont Triad of Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem, with about a dozen small towns adjacent and in-between. It will fill in just like Charlotte did, over the next few decades. This is one of the most pro-business states in the nation, and it attracts people like flies to a picnic table. 20 years ago, people from NY would sell their little $500,000, 1500 square foot bungalows on Long Island and move to Lake Norman where they would build three times that much house for the same money, with a 3/4 acre lot. They didn't mind the 40-minute commute to uptown. But hey, getting ANYWHERE in Charlotte seems to take half an hour or more. I drove 12 miles to work every day in 25-30 minutes, and the same route home took 45-70 minutes. We are happy to have moved to the Piedmont Triad, where the roads are mostly empty, by comparison, and real estate is still semi-affordable.

[@alexandermiller2975]

During college, I dated a girl from a distant suburb of Charlotte. Then after college, I lived in Asheville and had to go to Charlotte a few times for work or networking. What's so crazy about watching this video is that every single time I went, everyone always took me to the locations depicted in this video. I have been to each place exactly once and was also pleasantly surprised each time. Whether there for work, play, or something in between, I was brought to a place with urban amenities by people who like Charlotte for the space.

[@sjasonwang7384]

This is one the best videos you've done recently! It was inspiring to see the good patches of urbanism in otherwise sprawling suburbia

[@angellacanfora]

I agree! Plus there were many LOL moments. And a cat. Cats make everything better.

[@loogabarooga2812]

I've seen more innovative urbanism in sprawling hellscapes like charlotte than already built up denser cities. There's some seriously well designed neighborhoods in Phoenix, but you'd never know if because they're 99% cookie cutter suburbia

[@colormedubious4747]

@@angellacanfora No. They make everything more entertaining, because Screenwriter Guy decided. 🤣

[@barryballinger6023]

Here’s the thing though, those patches are always much too expensive for the median income.

[@loogabarooga2812]

@@barryballinger6023 true, but that's the case for every denser neighbourhood in the US (generally)

[@iskenuz]

As a Charlottean, it's surprising to see us turn up here! Charlotte is a really young city, it built up extremely quickly in the 90s and 2000s, and the city really wasn't prepared for that. CATS is chronically underfunded and has to build out its infrastructure itself (Norfolk Southern refuses to share lines), so setting up the networking to reduce car dependency is slow going. Those neighborhoods like NoDa and South End that ARE walkable are a really deliberate effort by the city and community to try and start creating an urban core and to prove out the system for skeptical NIMBYs. Raleigh also hamstrings us from time to time, like with the Cintra controlled toll-lanes on 77, or the byzantine CATS management structure required due to state anti-union policies. The Charlotte-State Gov't relations really are awful, despite the fact that it's unambiguously the crown jewel of the Carolinas. We're trying our best to catch up with the massive economic and population boom of the last few decades, but that's the big thing, we're trying. There's a chance to build something really special here, and turn this sprawl into a home, we just need time to put that into action.

[@wgoode97]

Norfolk Southern kills the Red Line every time it comes up because they use that line maybe once every 20 years… I feel like rail companies are just begging for re-nationalization at this point.

[@CityNerd]

Great comment. Love to hear from the Charlotteans!

[@scottthomas34]

Spot on from a fellow Charlottean

[@ChadMaupin-ki5ek]

Worth noting that Charlotte utilized a novel concept to get federal funding for light rail 20 years ago: Instead of documenting existing density that needed mass transit, they instead promised rezoning and infrastructure to allow density along the future mass transit line. It was more of a "build it and they will come." This was cutting edge in the 2000's in terms of transit models. Local politics at the time was a heated debate with conservative voices calling it a boondoggle and the trains would be empty. You don't hear that at all any more as Charlotte has indeed followed through. All of the density shown in this video: Uptown, Optimist Park, NoDa and South End, were largely parking lots warehouse and brownfields wastelands 20 years ago. But Charlotte gave developers license to go big and as a result the first real urban density now exists in Charlotte. they made a plan and made it happen.

[@starrwulfe]

ATLien here; I got to hang out in the "before times" in Charlotte as a fill in tech for Sprint at a store on South Street while staying in some Motel 6 off Independence. This was back in 2002 when there was only 1/4 of 485. I can't even imagine what the place is like now. If it's anything like how Atlanta has changed in the same time, Whoa.

[@RocketPunches]

I think the worst part of this variety of development, is that despite living in the Charlotte metro area (Matthews), I've experienced about as much of the actual urban areas of the city in the last decade as you probably did just being here for a little bit. Those areas are nice to be in, but from the outside looking in they feel like little walled pockets of unattainable life. I've lived with family for over 30 years, I used to fire rockets off in a field that the 485 ring road goes through now, and while they've started building some denser housing out my way now, I'm no closer to affording moving into my own space now than I was when dense housing was an afterthought. I know friends who have lived in the Plaza area for going on 10 years now who've had roommates the whole time. If you're not one of the bankers here, a lot of the urban elements of Charlotte are an ethereal thing you experience on the fringes of your mostly strode centered day to day.

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

My aunt used to live in Plaza-Midwood in the late 90's. She paid $350 dollars a month for a nice little bungalow on Thomas street! Can you imagine what you would pay for that now! *sigh*

[@ebrim5013]

The thing about dense housing though is that it very quickly and efficiently increases supply. These new developments may still be out of reach for many but they’re helping to make sure that what’s currently in reach for them stay that way.

[@JonZiegler6]

while it's unfortunate more people can't afford to live in these places, it is the best evidence that this is the lifestyle people actually want

[@andrewdiamond2697]

True. I bought in Plaza Midwood nearly 2 decades ago. It was kind of expensive then. Today, there's no way I could buy the house I'm in....I don't think I make enough to get a mortgage at the current market price, and if I could, I'd be "house poor".

[@skybrielVGM]

This is exactly how I feel living in Union county just south of Charlotte. A lot of people like the idea of living in a nice walkable area in the city, but it just doesn’t seem feasible outside looking in

[@randolphwilliams2365]

I walked all over Charlotte for a year. Some neighborhoods have huge oak trees lining the streets. Beautiful and unique.

[@oneaburns]

This guy just wants to hate on anything that’s not a big, dense, concrete jungle. City dwellers are so miserable, they want everyone else to be miserable too.

[@daltonsideas]

Charlotte proper isn't the problem, I think it's the fact that the city's influence spreads so far that it makes traffic awful for anywhere within like a 30 mile radius of Charlotte.

[@robertofernandez7773]

What bothers me the most, is that most of so called urbanists can't accept that there are lots of people out there that don't like the same things they do, and they tend to be very arrogant and condescending to the rest. Not everyone wants to live in Manhattan. I'm European, Spanish, specifically and i lived in Madrid, Paris (1 year), london ( 1 year and a half) and hated having to take the underground, metro, etc... i live in miami now. And i love my car. I respect who ever wants to use transit but please respect who wants to drive. I love my house, my yard, I lived cramped in a small condo for most of my life and I'm tired of hearing neighbors burp, farther or have sex. Charlotte is a beautiful city, with polite people, something weird to find in the other cities I lived before. Definitely no sense of community .

[@_Elizabeth_theMaid]

Love the uptown area. So much history!

[@mugnuz]

i think its ugly. id rather live in a village with a nice property driving half an hour to the next city than living somewhere like charlotte where you need your car for everything and need 30 minutes to get anywhere...

[@coopermoore9631]

As someone who calls Charlotte my hometown, I’m obsessed with this vid (& the comments). Some keys to understanding the city: 1. The large majority of people are not from CLT. 2. People move there bc it’s quiet and dependable. It’s not super exciting or sexy, but it has nice trees, nice people, above average schools, and it’s honestly pretty affordable. 3. People are still moving in droves. Until the population and development stabilizes, Charlotte will have no definitive culture or “vibe”. & honestly it may never! It’s a giant town full of bankers and accountants. 4. Charlotte is a city of middle class transplants (many of whom accepted higher salaries to leave the crowded environs of SoCal, south Florida, NYC, and the likes). Many of these people moved to the region when there was virtually no traffic, and I think as traffic congestion worsens the aforementioned transplants have war flashbacks - thus the broad support for forward thinking projects that ease the burden of cars. In all- Charlotte is such a lovable place. Very little unique character, tons of sprawl, but an undeniable charm in its arboreal and leafy surroundings. Makes me miss home!

[@mayam9575]

A video about red lining and the way it affects cities would be really interesting. The city I grew up in was really affected by it. Part of what made my neighborhood great was that no one cared enough about it to force it to be only single family housing so we had multifamily housing and a bunch of restaurants, a library, corner store and other small businesses. But on the flip side there was a lot less investment there compared to other areas. If you look at the performance of elementary schools there's still huge disparities that fall on almost the same barriers as the original red line maps. I would love to see more investment in this area but not as the loss of the character of the neighborhood.

[@taylor8849]

I for sure agree with you, making a video on the effects of redlining and it’s neighborhoods. Another thing I think of with redlining is freeways disproportionately effecting areas. Like segregating neighborhoods, avoiding wealthier white neighborhoods, and destroying thriving minority/low income communities. Usually what comes to mind with freeway segregation in my mind is San Diego and Atlanta, especially being designed to segregate minority communities, and why Atlanta’s freeways are so nausea inducing.

[@TheKeksadler]

I grew up in an area absolutely decimated by redlining (I believe 78% of the town was deemed Hazardous), and it is incredibly apparent how much damage it has done to the city as a whole. Much of the development had to be done outside of the original city and left a festering empty core. Many of the buildings in the downtown area were eventually torn down due to neglect. It would be my dream to see this area get more investment, but there's almost no reason for anyone to do so. (It's not a part of any major metro area)

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

I think that also effects the public transit situation in the city. The same NIMBY mentality that created redlining also created a wealthy suburban culture that consistently blocks attempts at building an effective transit system out of fear of bringing more less-wealthy (and darker skinned) residents to their neighborhoods.

[@CityNerd]

Yeah, it's something I want to interject where it makes sense in my videos, but I have a hard time imagining how to make a video around it. Would almost have to focus on a single neighborhood and talk about how things like business location, infrastructure investments, and schools/public services play out. I also don't like my videos to be preachy, so -- yeah, gotta figure out how to walk the tightrope.

[@evaclaire1930]

​@@CityNerd If you wanted to do specific neighborhoods, Boston could be a good place to focus on because it's still very segregated here as a legacy of redlining and there's been a lot happening recently with transit and housing. Something that affects me personally that I find interesting is the Mattapan High Speed Line because it's truly a unique situation that came out of redlining and neglect (I truly don't know anywhere else in the country that has historical trolley cars because they just...never got replaced).

[@willzwrld9597]

Longtime Charlotte resident and ‘urbanist’. My biggest frustration with charlottes great nodes is just that they’re all very upscale. It is still very much a city where good urban living is a luxury, and while the growth around downtown is good it has unfortunately pushed a ton of longtime residents out and concentrated poverty in inner ring subburbs around the city. South end for example has become mind boggling expensive in the last 10 years or so. If the city ever gets around to expanding the light rail hopefully enough walkable units can be built that they become an option for working class people in Charlotte rather than a luxury.

[@willzwrld9597]

Also I wake up every day in hope that they will demolish 1-277. It’s the biggest barrier to charlotte developing a true dense urban core rather than a collection of good urban nodes.

[@5h4rp13]

This is the comment I was looking for. He mentioned people coming to places like Southend from the suburbs and why not say "I could live here?" It's because the people living in Southend are all transplants from more expensive parts of the country and the ones coming in from the suburbs are the native Charlotteans (or more long-term residents) who are being priced out of the city. I grew up in Charlotte and the consistent narrative I've heard my whole life is people trying to get out of the city and move to places like Mt Holly or Huntersville because it's not sustainable for the people who have roots in Charlotte to stay there

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

I lived in South End 20 years ago and you could easily find decently sized living spaces for less than 200k, that type of price range is unheard of now in South End!

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

@@willzwrld9597 Me too! I've always said that 277 is to uptown like a belt someone gave you when you were 5 years old that you can't take off. Now your middle-aged and the belt is cutting off your circulation.

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

@@5h4rp13 You hit the nail on the head with comment.

[@ryanhavanas8520]

I moved to Charlotte this year and I could've sworn you were stalking me. Lots of those pictures are of places I bike and walk constantly. It's definitely a work in progress, but when your baseline is suburbs, even Charlotte is a paradise of walkability.

[@idriveastationwagon1534]

I saw they extended the little sugar creek to SC finally. Hopefully they’ll extend the one from UNCC and connect it to the little sugar creek

[@ryanhavanas8520]

@@idriveastationwagon1534 I just want the rail trail to go into uptown instead of awkwardly ending at 277

[@idriveastationwagon1534]

@@ryanhavanas8520 I hate that stupid gap too.

[@CityNerd]

Maybe I was

[@TheAmazingHuman-Man2]

I’m been to the 36th street stop quite a few times for group runs. Noda 5k was this Saturday and I had to walk past the cranes and around the construction site and either cross tryon with no crosswalk or walk like on the road with no shoulder space/sidewalk. Was kinda annoying. Is plenty of car free streets on that running route though. Went to Hi Wire run once instead and had to stop a lot and felt very unsafe around the cars.

[@jakehay5308]

Im a charlotean, a cool project you didn’t talk much about was the greenway which makes my favorite mode of transportation (biking) a lot more enjoyable and extends my range. Still got a longggg way to go but I think all the new development is going in a decent direction.

[@skipperknappen9222]

I like your section on Camp North End, it sums up the mentality of a lot of folks who live here in Charlotte. "Oh its a 20-30 minute walk...guess I'll uber/drive" is how a lot of people here roll. My girlfriend and I lived in South End for more than a year, from there we could walk to Uptown and watch the Knight, Hornets or Panthers easily but people looked at us like we're crazy. Another thing to note about Charlotte is they have an extensive network of "greenways" that follow some of the various creeks in the area. With the greenway i live on, i can now bike or walk all the way to uptown or even go all the way to South Carolina (little sugar creek Greenway). They're only adding to these and they are beautiful! Great video and very informative!

[@sayimjustadreamer]

Really great video! I appreciate the fresh take, i.e. not "dunking" on an easy target. Focusing on "green shoots" is arguably more impactful than highlighting places that we already know are great. Reminds me of your video about Los Angeles, which I love. Keep up the great work!

[@CityNerd]

Green shoots! Love the metaphor.

[@danstreelman692]

Thanks for this! I had the pleasure of attending your panel during the Strong Towns gathering and loved it! I moved to Charlotte in late 2021 from San Jose and it’s inspiring to see all the progress I’ve seen in just that little amount of time. Glad you were able to visit all of the areas adding density including my neighborhood of Plaza Midwood. As much of the city is still hand-wringing about adding more and extending light rail lines, the evidence of their impact can be seen all along the Blue Line. None of the development in NODA or South End would exist without the Blue Line. The city needs to prioritize new and expanded transit options, and give so many streets a diet, including Central Ave, which sees 4 lanes of 40 mph traffic blasting through a dense neighborhood with narrow sidewalks and bars and restaurants. Glad you enjoyed Charlotte! And thank you for highlighting all the good projects to while addressing areas where more work needs to be done.

[@MrFolton17]

Lol idk how Charlotte is the worst here Denver has this setup like every 3-4 roads DOWNTOWN. It’s insufferable

[@CityNerd]

Glad you got to be there! I knew I was gonna make a Charlotte video but I didn't know what about until I talked to some of the locals the second night I was there, and then the story started taking shape.

[@AmyAnnetteHenion]

I lived in Charlotte for seven years, and while it was a nice enough place to live, I ended up returning to dense, walkable New England because I missed public transit. Individual neighborhoods in Charlotte are fairly walkable, but driving between them is extremely hazardous. And as other people mentioned, it was strange living in a place that had zero identity on the national or global stage. Many people thought for years that I lived in Charleston, SC because they forgot that Charlotte even existed.

[@TheChrismeg34]

That's what charlotte has turned into. The "urbanism" has destroyed the culture and is definitely not sustainable for the future. It's breweries and coffee shops on every block. And after two years, same location but with a different name for "re-branding", cause it shouldn't be their in the first place.. And the density is what makes charlotte attractive, it's the public transportation and overall urban planning that's hurting charlotte. Not only do you have to drive everywhere, which I actually don't mind , the roads and interstate system in themselves are actually dangerous with how little work they receive.

[@DivinesLegacy]

What city in New England?

[@abowolewa]

​@@DivinesLegacy Hartford, Ogunquit, and Worcester are cities in New England.

[@a-r]

​@@TheChrismeg34 Ironically, it's the car-dependent suburbs of Charlotte that aren't sustainable. It's not just about "breweries and coffee shops", the real basis of new urbanism is to be more efficient with how you plan your city. Logically, being more efficient = being more sustainable. But don't just take my word for it! Urban3 has done lots of studies comparing land values with city expenses throughout different places, and, generally, the more "urban" (efficient) parts of cities tend to be far more sustainable, with much higher values-per-acre, while the car-centric sprawl is often a drain on the cities. NotJustBikes' video on Lafayette's bankruptcy was truly eye-opening. I'd recommend watching it!

[@ramencurry6672]

I’ve visited Charlotte a bunch of times. I agree. An incredibly bland city for a major hub. But people in North Carolina who never traveled think it’s a worldly place and a real city

[@macbookpro57]

I live near Raleigh, and it’s even more sprawled out than Charlotte. Lots of cool sites to see, but you have to drive freakin EVERYWHERE. Funny thing is it’s probably the least “walkable” medium sized city in the country, yet they have some of the best greenways for walking/hiking out of any other American city I’ve been to.

[@MikyleChristian]

Maybe I'm biased because I'm from the sunbelt but it was really encouraging and hopeful to see what these sprawling cities are doing WELL, vs. just dunking all over what they do wrong, which most of us who live here are already well aware of. Thanks for the video!

[@db399]

I've actually found Charlotte not that terrible to get around. It's far from ideal, but I didn't find it as challenging as say places like the greater Phoenix area.

[@angellacanfora]

Phoenix is almost too easy to dunk on...

[@ladyofspa]

Phx is 😮 no thanks

[@MichaelSalo]

I thought for sure Phoenix would be the capital of sprawl

[@Maranville]

Haha I live in Phoenix. Basically you have to compromise greatly on any urban ideals you might have in order to stay sane here. It'd be fascinating to see his take on it, but he might find it redundant after spending time in Vegas.

[@CityNerd]

Yeah the spatial layout/distribution of a metro area is a bit more complicated a question than just dividing population by a somewhat arbitrary area.

[@bwill357]

Lived in Charlotte for the past 5 years and yes it is stuck in limbo between a sprawling mess scarred by ghosts of American urbanist past and progressive high density hopefully soon more transit oriented development, NC has to share resources with many mid to large sized cities in the state so getting large infrastructure projects off the ground is challenging but in the works fingers crossed..

[@kailahmann1823]

I am really impressed by that "rail trail" and the development around it - this really serves as a very long pedestrian area and is something you don't see every day, even in Europe.

[@Trevor_Leach]

The rail trail is awesome. There are so many amazing restaurants, bars, and apartments off it. Only issue is the rent price lol

[@airops423]

High rent shows the demand for these sorts of places is high!

[@CityNerd]

A lot of it is a designed almost as more of a public space to hang out in than a transportation corridor -- almost a linear park at a few locations.

[@ProSandlin]

That rail trail in southend is also a hot spot for community events! They often shut down the main road there, set up tables, etc.

[@bogjoore]

Another really weird and interesting pedestrian area is a greenway that goes on the east side of I-277. It's weird to see a very walkable and lush greenway that connects a large part of the city next to a pretty big freeway. I guess it's in line the oxymoronic feel of Charlotte.

[@rtasva]

As someone who's lived in Charlotte most of my life, I was always unhappy with the city, but I could never put words to why. After visiting Boston for a week back in March of this year and seeing just how much more developed transit and walkability was, not just in the heart of the city, but far out into the outskirts, it absolutely blew my mind, and really helped me to understand what I'd been missing and wanting for all this time. I really do hope that this city can improve, but right now even the proposed improvements never seem to make any progress (I've lived here 13 years and that whole time they've continuously said the Light rail line from Matthews to Huntersville would be done in five years - afaik they still haven't even broken ground.) Keep making great content- Cheers!

[@adamconner9302]

This gives me flashbacks to when they were putting up 485. It was literally 'being built' my entire childhood and through till what, i think my late 20s or maybe even early 30s by the time they put that final section in on the northwest side of town. The road was literally obsolete by the time they completed it on the south side of town too. I don' know the data but that project must have lasted 25-30 years. There seems to be something quite rotten with the way funding is done in NC. It sure seems that a lot more state tax money is going to build roads in the east half of the state, especially around the triangle.

[@scottd7222]

Boston socks 😂. Lets trade man haha. You can have this dump.

[@mikehunt3420]

Lol you would hate Houston

[@Userius1]

Chicago is very walkable and with strong transit. But both of those just lead towards you getting mugged or or sitting next to some smelly ass bum. I'll stick with my car.

[@WolfsonsWay]

More likely to get commuter rail on the north side.

[@blindpanthervlogs]

I was born and raised in Charlotte, and I still live here. The more I’ve traveled, and come back home, the more I think to myself, damn this city is like the size of some metro areas. It’s insane. No joke it could take you almost an hour to get from one side of town to the other.

[@ethakis]

I'm genuinely shocked at how much progress Charlotte is making. It's incredible. The city I live in is like Charlotte in a lot of ways, but much smaller. It makes me think that if we started doing the same thing, we could have similar progress.

[@777jones]

The city has a hot business environment. This attracts well educated, affluent, law abiding people to live in cities. That, in turn, employs everyone else.

[@ChatGPT1111]

Most people don't realize that sprawl was part of President Eisenhower's strategic plan to get the population decentralized in the event of a major war. That, together with the Interstate Highway System, would minimize casualities and allow respositioning of assets if an invasion occurred.

[@Koyoo11]

Trust me I live here it’s not fun at all they won’t fix anything instead of adding lanes to our highways with how many people we have the spent 5 years building one extra lane but a yearly subscription. The downtown has no identity and people don’t talk about the crime here it’s not good. I feel like charlotte peaked in the early 2000s and now they are stuck building new CBD shops and breweries haha

[@davidkaseykelly]

We live here as well, and enjoy some aspect of the city daily. "It's all in the eye of the beholder" as they say. If you know how to get out and have a great time, you will. If you don't, its pretty simple. We love Charlotte, and hope the rest of the trolls keep trolling because there sure are a ton of sexy people moving here daily. Peace out haters! #Charlotte #QueenCity #NorthCarolina

[@brian5238]

Charlotte's a wonderful, growing city that is finally maturing and coming into its own. But, like every city the appeal there is not for everyone. For the places that hard-core urbanist worship, even NYC, as a place to live, is unappealing to most. DC is a mess of a place for traffic, affordability and too many snobs. Chicago is gangland USA. LA has become....well, I won't say it. Miami is woefully unaffordable and unpleasant. I guess I will end there, but you get the point.

[@gagbro29]

The younger of an urbanist you are, the more optimistic you can be about a place like Charlotte. But NYC/Chicago/other places already have meaningful urbanism and if you’re an older urbanist, you would rather be there.

[@StLouis-yu9iz]

Not sure what age has to do with it but alright..

[@gagbro29]

@@StLouis-yu9iz It has everything to do with the topic. How long is it going to take for Charlotte to become more urbanist? If you’re young, you may have the time and patience to wait. If you’re older, no point in sticking around waiting for the future to materialize if it can already be experienced elsewhere.

[@machtmann2881]

Also, you probably have more money as an older person to handle these more expensive and established places (and also more jaded because you've seen more failure over the years). You could wait around for a place like Charlotte to get better or you could enjoy what's left of your years. Hell, you could probably even move to Spain if you were so inclined. I'd rather live in Valencia than waste the last years of my life hoping Charlotte will turn the corner after decades of seeing the opposite.

[@TimeTraveIer_0]

It's interesting you say that. I'm a young urban planner in Lyon, France, and I feel kinda desperate to look at how cars are fucking everywhere here. But on the other hand, there are young urban planners with the same aspiration as mine that will start their career in Charlotte, NC...

[@MrFolton17]

I’m that way in Denver and I’m 26 lol, like it’s going to take 20 years to equal Minneapolis, which still isn’t even great, so might as well move to another city.

[@kammore6209]

Charlotte may be sprawling but it really is a beautiful city and it's definitely improving. It's has some bright spots like the developing South End and Uptown.

[@a-m7982]

As someone who grew up in Mecklenburg county it's worth noting that what is circled as "Charlotte" is a bunch of smaller towns and communities. My town unincorporated to get a highway built without having to pay for it then reincorporated when it looked like Charlotte was about to take over. It's going to be hard to get the metro area to plan transit together when so many of those communities try so hard to be "not Charlotte".

[@CityNerd]

I wanted to do a whole piece in this video about the annexation process specific to Charlotte because it's just wild.

[@Mr1159pm]

Same like LA OC metro. On top of hundreds of small towns you have two different counties to deal with.

[@starrwulfe]

@@CityNerd There's a good idea for a video though-- how in the last 15 or so years, incorporating towns are usually done to not be like the major city in the region, but still benefit from proximity. There's a whole state law that was made to have that happen here in Georgia so cities around Atlanta could be incorporated like this. Most suburban communities are unincorporated county lands but that's really changed in the last 15 years starting with Sandy Springs.

[@AmurTiger]

@@CityNerd There might be an interesting video or three about amalgamation in various contexts, benefits and downsides and everything. I know in the Vancouver area there's mixed views on it since there's not a lot of certainty on which style of civic management will float to the top, especially since there are known downsides to City of Vancouver's approach as the maze of bylaws have inhibited development of much-needed housing.

[@suckka1244]

Just like Birmingham lol

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

I think it's funny that there are so many people in the comment section bashing on Charlotte for being bland with bad city planning and a lack of culture who come from places that aren't much better ie Raleigh, Birmingham...

[@brian5238]

For some its jealousy and for some others its just plain ignorance; most of the bashers never even visited the place. Or if they have they did not spend time there to fully investigate.

[@BaronBytes]

Montreal has really been improving. New numbers coming out suggest that downtown, the bike share went from 1.8% in the last 10 years to approaching 5%. Quebec City's second year of bike share has had 10 000 trip in the 2 first weeks. Here's to everyone fighting the good fight in North America. The only way to change things is to push for change at the lower levels so the high levels have their hands forced.

[@Mrtoz-ct3yn]

What does that have to do with sprawl?

[@deanchapman1824]

When I went to Montreal, the only time I used my car was when I went to Quebec City.

[@abcdeshole]

Are those numbers the modal share or the % of people who use Bixi?

[@blastdamage]

Montreal rules. During the summer I almost exclusively use Bixi to get around. It's really cool that more and more people use it each year. The only downside is this means my local Bixi station is often empty when I need to grab one (or completely full by the time I get home).

[@BaronBytes]

@@abcdeshole they are an estimation I read in Le Devoir this week for bikes modal share.

[@SteveTheDog115]

the thirsty beaver is an institution! that was a story where they tried to strong arm the bar out of their plot and they held strong and forced the aparment complex to build around it, given, maybe not the most urbanist decision, but that place held their ground against the "luxury" apartment developer mafia.

[@KWMacdonald]

There's a picture that went viral from the Rolling Stones' last visit to Charlotte. Mick Jagger was spotted having an incognito beer at The Thirsty Beaver. There he was, in a hoody, all by himself. Hopefully he continued to be unbothered.

[@matthewhall5571]

@@KWMacdonald even if he had to skip town in a hurry, at least he has the moves like Jagger.

[@CityNerd]

Yeah, the single thing I'm most uncomfortable with in this video is joking about Up cosplay. I mean, whatever, but there's surely a compelling story behind that with a lot of raw emotions. I just don't know what else to say about it though.

[@williamburkholder769]

​@@CityNerd YES, there is a LONG story about The Thirsty Beaver. The Beaver is an institutional dive bar. It is an iconic representation of Plaza Midwood. The fact that they held tight and stayed there as an apartment building went up around them is both hilarious and telling. Charlotte is a an eclectic blend of the charming Olde South, the redneck stock car culture, the button-down banking culture, the trucking culture, and so much more. It's easy to knock the sprawl, but don't knock the economic opportunity it has represented for a couple million people since the mid-1960s. I have no desire to return to the craziness it was to live there, but it has its charms.

[@SilverDragonJay]

honestly, keeping a bar in an apartment complex sounds like a great idea. Its a place for residents to meet and socialize while still being close enough to home that they can safely walk back (no DUIs or designated drivers needed). I imagine that its also really good for the bar itself as they have a larger potential customer base. The only potential problem I see is if the patrons have a tendency to get loud and rowdy, but I feel like if you're moving into a nearby apartment you should understand that's a possibility and might even be moving there specifically _because_ its close enough to the bar to get an after dinner drink. imo, more apartments need amenities like that close by. Imagine living in an apartment complex and having a convenience store or restaurant _on property._ If you live in Europe you probably don't need to imagine. Idk, I feel like the most anti-urbanist decision is building nothing but apartments such that there's no nearby amenities for the residents. Apartments might be dense housing, but the pros of that are undercut a bit if you still need to drive to get anywhere good. A bigger problem then density is how housing, commerce, and employment are typically separated out into distinct sectors with little to no overlap.

[@dbclass2969]

I can feel the Atlanta Beltline video inching closer and closer since you're covering the south.

[@scpatl4now]

...and it is almost finished!!!

[@TommyJonesProductions]

The Beltline is creating amazing urban growth and reviving a LOT of abandoned neighborhoods. I ride it almost every day.

[@cmh8241]

Yessss come to Atlanta next! I want his thoughts for sure. Please justify my hope in this city. 🙏🏽

[@Ocinneade345]

@@cmh8241 there's no hope for Atlanta. So glad I left for the Triangle 17 years ago.

[@Ruckus45]

Lived in NC most of my life and city sprawl is just normal to me. Love living in Charlotte...well, 30 minutes outside of Charlotte. All the best stuff 45 minutes away at most, airport 25 minutes away, and yet I still can live rural/suburban life. Love it

[@CCGarland]

My friend, I'm from the south and Charlotte is a breath of fresh air if you want to don't want to move up north. Sprawl is ridiculous in South Carolina, specifically Charleston. There are basically only suburban communities. So, when I visited Charlotte, I was so surprised that it felt like an actual city. I think it's just now catching its stride. They're doing a good job of making sure the city is well-balanced and not leaving anybody or communities out. While it may not look like much compared to other built-out cities, I think they have an excellent urban planning team. At least they're giving consideration to what the citizens want. In Charleston, and most cities in SC, they basically cater to tourists now and the affluent. Great video and I'm glad you visited our city!

[@WiscoNortherner]

I’d like to see a video on how Great Lakes cities make use of their waterfront.

[@briandewyre9446]

And what the challenges are for cities like Cleveland to make it happen-

[@dongato90]

Have to admit am geeking out that you were here in Charlotte! I’ve lived here since the 70s the growth and change has been significant. Not always for the good, but also not always bad. I’m glad you picked up on the good with the bad. Charlotte is unique in that the corporate leaders here took an interest in the growth of the city and have been visionaries the potential. What you see happening uptown, south end, light rail and even sports complexes and pro sports acquisitions and other cool neighborhoods are because these corporations want a city that is attractive, fun ,vibrant to attract world class talent and that is exactly what is happening. With that, the area and surrounding communities have also experienced growth and they all have grown into each other. This sprawl. The Charlotte Airport is also a product of city leaders with a mindset of build it and they will come, which has been huge for the city. All this to say, it’s not perfect, but something special is happening in this ever changing melting pot we call Charlotte. Glad you were here, as historically this town has always thought it was destined for greatness, and is open to recreating itself.

[@stephenjoshd2]

As someone who's been following your channel for a few months, and lives in Charlotte, it's exciting to see my local places in one of your videos. We have a *long* way to go in the urbanist route but progress is being made. The rail trail counter that was in one of the shots tallying people has rolled over 4 times this year, it's about 4.3 million walking or biking trips past that sign since Jan 1 as of now. It's really the last 4 or 5 years that South End has transitioned from the mid-rise apartments to building more of the higher rise buildings that you discuss, and that is entirely the result of the initial investment in the rail and initial urban amenities that are now in a positive feedback loop. The effect of transit from the blue line turned South End from the "abandoned warehouse district" 30 years ago to the most dense, walkable, popular, and growing part of the city today. I was surprised to see Charlotte the bottom of the sprawl list compared to cities like Atlanta or Pheonix, I wonder if some of that is due to statistics being applied against city limits rather than metro areas, Charlotte's actual city limits cover many areas that are often legally separate suburbs in other metros. Regardless, I really want to see us continue to make progress, preferably faster when it comes to urban infrastructure projects like protected bike lanes. I don't live in South End anymore, but I am in another close in neighborhood where I am able to live a car-light, urbanist lifestyle. Many of our neighborhoods have so much potential with a little bit of investment, but the further out you go the more sprawling, stroads and suburban style subdivisions take over. We do have some vocal and growing groups pushing for better urban growth patterns, and if it can happen here, it can happen anywhere. I don't know if it helps any, but the parking deck you saw near the 36th street light rail stop is part of an apartment building and primarily for residents (though I'm sure there will be some paid parking for people driving into the neighborhood. It's not really for park and ride with the light rail (We have plenty of park and rides, they are just further away from Uptown on the line) Edit to add: most of those gravel parking lots you mentioned are absolutely placeholders for future development. I seen several in both uptown and south end get transformed into something better. I'm pretty sure there all just investors making a bit of income while waiting for the right price to sell and have something built.

[@RichardSterlingRushFan]

Great video. I've lived in Charlotte 41 years and had the lucky foresight to move to South End 16 years ago. At the time, was a traveling sales rep so very car dependent. Now, by fate, I have an office a 5 minute walk away. I drive my car maybe 10 miles per week. I'm fortunate and I absolutely love it.

[@jeffcobb8151]

I live in the UK but visit Charlotte for work every 3 months or so. I’ve travelled extensively throughout the world and visited many different cities in many different countries. Charlotte is one of those places that just seems extremely disconnected. On one hand, everything only ever seems 20 minutes away, but you always have to go 20 minutes to be somewhere. The public transport is just, well, nonexistent which is mad to see in such a sprawling area. There is no real decent transport from the Airport which is, I think, the tenth busiest in the US. This is a major red flag. Most of the city is what I describe as copy-paste. Its like the planners draw a square on Google Maps around one area and decide to do the same somewhere else with a Walmart, Chillis, Marriot, Starbucks etc all placed around a mall area. To go anywhere in the city (which is usually 20 minutes) you HAVE to go by car. For a Brit I am so used to just ‘nipping’ out for some milk, or quickly going to the post office. This just doesn’t exist in Charlotte. There are though, wonderful looking neighbourhoods. Dilworth is lovely, South Park area is great. However, even these places suffer from being remote compared to local amenities. A quick search for local restaurants will once again lead you to the door of your car. Again, as someone who has visited, among others, Bangkok, Sydney, Melbourne, Joburg, Boston, Munich, Prague, Budapest, Shanghai and many more my overall feeling of Charlotte is it just lacks an identity. It risks becoming such a kind of ‘blinkered’ city where people are only there to go to work and go home. There is little culture or atmosphere and when there is, its in very small amounts in a very small area. It feels extremely chain-y in the sense there is no ‘mom & pop’ things, or if there is, they don’t really look like they are. I hope they can fix it and make alterations moving forward. Charlotte is growing at a huge speed but it needs to not lose focus of the long term plans.

[@jeffcobb8151]

I’ve never seen your videos before but it popped up on my feed. I had to show my girlfriend who is on the receiving end of me being away so much. It helped me explain to her what Charlotte is like as she asks each tome I go and you summed it up very well.

[@sunnyBLR]

Yea, Charlotte is boring if you don't know what to do but thats the price you pay to live in a clean, relatively safe, very Green city. It has green charming neighborhoods , with old mature trees close to uptown. Commute is very easy compared to most other cities i have visited. Yea walkability sucks but who really walks in blazing summer heat or cold winters. Do people really walk to go shopping? The neighborhoods are great to go for a run or walk your dog when you need exercise. I live in Myers Park/South Park area, I can walk to several restaurants. Its quaint but only 10 minutes from uptown. I love it!

[@kickhuggy]

Of course someone living in the most expensive part of the city thinks Charlotte is great lol.

[@vincentscauzzo5595]

I go to college in the Charlotte suburbs and have tried to explore the region from a perspective like CityNerd’s. It is a wonderful place with nice people, great weather, neat culture, and a lot of growth recently. However, while you looked at the old suburbs and areas tight to city on the light rail line, the northern suburbs going up I-77-Huntersville, Mooresville, etc-are all car-centric hellscapes with just as much population growth. The old freight line that runs north out of Charlotte has seen interest for passenger service for years, but I think bc it’s a single rail and still owned by Norfolk Southern, it would take an enormous amount of money to get the project going. Don’t even get me started on the express lanes on 77…

[@harimanchi]

uncc or queens?

[@markslauson4584]

Lake Norman is one of the best places I’ve lived. What’s a “car centric hellscape”. I guess it’s the place with some of the highest property values in the area where everyone wants to live.

[@idriveastationwagon1534]

Niner nation?

[@SeanMatheson-n3x]

You're spot on about the freight rail dilemma. If Charlotte were allowed to use the extensive freight rail network in the city for passenger service,the expensive and time-consuming task of building new lines wouldn't be necessary. I think this applies to the country as whole. The USA gives far too much leeway to the freight rail industry which I'm pretty sure is the largest rail network on the planet.

[@AmyAnnetteHenion]

Lol the express lanes on 77 are hot garbage.

[@billsmalley4911]

One of the things Charlotte needs most is bike infrastructure. The city has a ton of creeks that run mostly in the right directions vis-a-vis uptown, and reach into every neighborhood. There is a plan to make greenways along every creek, but it is seen as a part of recreation rather than transit. I think that is largely a mistake. Charlotte could be world class in this area

[@chrisnowakvlogs]

As a native Charlottean, it's true Charlotte is kind of a blank space. For me, I was born and raised here and it just feels like home. People who move here and end up staying, say the same thing. They love it. They don't know why, but it just feels like home. This was an interesting video. Thank you for not dunking on my hometown 😂

[@conifer27]

I disagree hard with the "stop painting parking garages" take. They exist, and they're not going anywhere. This is an incredibly car-dependent country (and NC is a fairly car-dependent state). Putting cool art on them seems quite preferable to having ugly drab gray structures around your city

[@peter-b-2889]

I loved all the art in this video -- and the stunning "Love is the bridge" mural. The mural has a story of it's own: kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3y2hHaEi5qIZ6M

[@skipperson4077]

A little to the side of this video, but recently went through Charlotte's airport and came away highly impressed. It's become a major hub that brings money to the city and maks it more attractive to certain types of business. At the same time, it was easy to connect to other flights, was lively without seeming too congested, and had lots of restaurants.

[@ycleped]

I'm glad you were impressed by Charlotte's airport. It's frequently top of the list of most-hated airports, so it's nice you had a good experience with it!

[@wayneashley5486]

As a Houstonian that just returned from a wonderful week in Boston, this video absolutely sings to my heart. I appreciate that you are able to see some major POTENTIAL for future development in these Stroad-ridden southern cities, and that you're willing to explore the small pockets where things are being done well or better than the majority of the city. Urbanism is always a series of choices, just like Sprawl, and we have the ability to steer those choices with more information and education. Here's hoping you'll consider a similar examination of Houston in the future!!

[@martinbrower4720]

I've been in Charlotte since 1998, and I've lived in south Charlotte, east Charlotte, Mint Hill, South Park, and University so I know my city. Historically Charlotte was a small town until the late 80s. Nationsbank, now Bank of America, built it's corporate tower in uptown. Wachovia (Wells Fargo), Duke Energy, Truist, Fifth Third, and First Citizens all have HQs there now. There are 9 Fortune 500 companies that HQ here. 6 more that are Fortune 1000. (and they are not all banks). NASCAR has a large presence here with a lot of the teams based in the Mooresville, Concord, and Huntersville area. Pro football, pro basketball, pro soccer, a regular PGA tournament, former President's Cup site and next year hosting the PGA Championship and semi-pro baseball. World-class universities with UNC-Charlotte, Queens University, Johnson and Wales, Johnson C. Smith University (HBCU), nearby Davidson, Winthrop, and Wingate and a very large community college with CPCC. It's 2 hours to the mountains, and 3 hours to the beach. There are museums, greenways for walking and biking, the National Whitewater Center for rafting and all sorts of outdoor activities. We have 3 lakes, Lake Norman, Mountain Island Lake, and Lake Wylie, all within an easy drive. Blumenthal has Broadway touring shows, we have multiple concert venues for live music, and a thriving local arts community. You call Charlotte the "World Capital of Sprawl" means you've obviously not tried getting around Atlanta, GA. Just because they have the MARTA doesn't mean it's effectively used. Once you get north of Washington DC you can't tell where urban ends and suburb begins. We've done our best to maintain our tree canopy, making Charlotte one of the greenest cities of it's size. As for the "international" comments, my wife is Indian and there are now over 20,000 Indians here, adding to the 61,000 Asian population. 39% white, 34% African-American, 8% Hispanic, 6.5% Asian...Charlotte is considered the most ethnically diverse city in North Carolina and the 23rd most diverse city in the United States among cities with more than 300,000 residents. If you come here and visit, and don't like it, that's fine. Live elsewhere. For those of us who call Charlotte home, we are proud of our city's progress and wouldn't live anywhere else.

[@RedScareClair]

I'm a Raleigh area person originally from just outside NYC. Sooooo much sprawl here. Walkable cities seem to be such an after thought. Build up the new subdivisions and deal with the after math later. Charlotte has potential but if Raleigh is any indication of anything, the entire state with just be suburban sprawl with farms just outside of them. True urbanization isn't happening as much as tiny walkable areas within a city.

[@NickCombs]

I'm right there with you on the walking. I would often take walk breaks when I worked at a Tempe office, even in 110° F heat (with a sunbrella). By the end of my walk, I was brimming with new ideas. Even now that I work remotely from Lincoln City OR with a view of Devil's Lake and lots of wildlife, I still desire to trek into the woods at least once a week.

[@alexisdetocqueville9964]

I moved to Charlotte in late 2021 and only stuck it out till April 2023. Charlotte has a booming economy, but was absolutely soulless hellscape of sprawl and 5 over 1s. Touting high rises in Charlotte is kind of missing the point, when they run 3.5 - 5k for anywhere large enough for a small family. The experience for 90% of people in Charlotte who are not well-paid bankers is still carcentric misery in a generic apartment complex. I'm so much happier back in my downtrodden rust belt city (Upstate NY) than I ever was in Charlotte.

[@kenstevens7855]

Charlotte has a lot of transplants that come from New York and Chicago and bigger cities that are densely populated but have a much higher cost of living. The bankers want their McMansions with acre sized lots, but a 30 minute drive from downtown. If they wanted urbanism, they would move somewhere that had it. They are literally running away from the things that are being posted in the video.

[@noahstevens1886]

A few years ago I had a layover in Charlotte. I was like what is this city? I know nothing about it and it's bigger than Cleveland? I was impressed.

[@FELiPES101]

keep in mind that charlotte is basically the home of auto racing in America...in this particular region you arent going to break the love for the automobile

[@Sordesman]

Really love the content, you were the first urbanist youtuber I saw and you have been the catalyst of me going down the deepest rabbit hole of all time. I don't know weather to thank you or hate you for that haha, ignorance was bliss. I grew up in the South Florida suburbs, you actually featured the stroad/highway interchange that I lived near in your strange highways interchange video (the Lyons road and Sawgrass expressway interchange in Coconut Creek.) In my opinion south Florida is the most car centric place in the US, excluding downtown Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Nearly all of the cities in south Florida only began development in the 50's or 60's after the everglades were dammed off. This lead to South Florida cities and infrastructure being built almost exclusively for cars, and not demolished for cars like other cities in the US. the city/town I grew up in, Coconut Creek was founded in 1967, the perfect time for pristine architecture and city planning. There isn't even a downtown in Coconut Creek, the "downtown" is a damn lifestyle center. I honestly didn't even know people could live without cars unless you lived in a place like Manhattan. Regardless, I would love to see you visit south Florida, and try to get around without a car and without staying in downtown Miami/Fort Lauderdale. A good city that you might actually have a chance of doing this in would be Boca Raton, but exclusively on the land surrounding the FAU college campus. Even that might be a stretch though, I took some classes there when I was in highschool and the only way I could get there was by having my older brother drive me. Also, the worst storad I've ever seen, Glades Road, is one of the main arterials that takes you through Boca, I have seen so many accidents, some of the worst traffic in my life the, and some of the most unfriendly pedestrian infrastructure there. I'd also recommend that if you did go, to take the trip in winter so you don't pass out from heat stroke, as I have nearly done. Thanks for the amazing content CityNerd and I hope you visit the abomination of my hometown soon!

[@xouxoful]

I thought Atlanta was the worst.

[@avarrius]

Atlanta is doing some great urban projects with the Atlanta Beltline, continued densification of Midtown, and Centennial Yards in downtown Atlanta.

[@danieldaniels7571]

Phoenix is notably worse than Atlanta, but I hear Jacksonville is worse

[@ThreeRunHomer]

Now now, don’t fight. I’m sure you’re all the worst in your own way.

[@MustraOrdo]

​@@ThreeRunHomer I'm worse than you though, straight up fax

[@franciscoacevedo3036]

When I saw the thumbnail thought it was Houston

[@abhi4ify]

I live across the border on SC side and drive into all these urban locations on a weekend.. Find a spot to park and then walk the streets up n down for hours and soak in the urbanism and go back to my rural country

[@Crevulus]

I went for the first time last year. I was stunned at how dead this supposed "bustling metropolis" was. Only one street had any kind of activity going on after 6pm; the rest was just empty offices and parking lots.

[@cherrydrivereviews8930]

i'm there everyday day and its always packed. its bustling now lol

[@cbreeze864]

I don’t know what city you went to but it wasn’t Charlotte.

[@brian5238]

False. At least for a sunbelt city it is quite active. There's always something to do in the city. To be honest the ONLY cities in the good ol' USA that have continual active cores are...wait....Okay, NYC, BOS, PHL, SF. Did I miss one?

[@Crevulus]

I'm coming from a eurocentric standpoint so I'm prejudiced. It might be considered active by US standards.

[@brian5238]

@@Crevulus I completely understand having being a world traveler. However, I found it true that most US cities do not compare with the bustling cores of European cities on the other side of the coin once one leaves the city core you quickly are in open land with nothing at all to speak of. Outside of the core cities in most of Europe it is dead! I think this is where US (and Australian) cities have a leg up, you can find things to do in the far flung suburbs.

[@chosenone9879]

I moved to Charlotte in 2020, my family and I absolutely love it. It's by far the cleanest big city I've seen and is also a great place to raise a family.

[@Only1Kato]

stay inside at night

[@sri-kaushalramana437]

yeah when I visited a few years back, I also noticed that it was very clean too

[@johnhermansen7558]

Similar topic: I'd love to see a video about how older cities can undo bad planning from the last century, especially rust belt cities that have good bones but decided to destroy their downtowns and build freeways, etc.

[@johnhermansen7558]

The photos of Milwaukee from the early/mid-20th century vs now that @IsaacRowlett shares are great inspiration

[@UserName-ts3sp]

cincinnati would be fun. you got the freeway near the riverfront and the abandoned subway

[@legatus_newt]

Rochester, NY removed their "Inner Loop" highway and reconnected the Central Business District with neighborhoods to the east and south. They started that project when I was still living there and now what was a highway is now a contiguous part of the East End ( trendy restaurant, bar, neighborhood just south of CBD).

[@Heather28400]

Big thumbs up

[@dasonata259]

A video on San Francisco redoing Embarcadero after removing freeway is good although right now many of those buildings are vacant. That idea could probably bake a little more

[@jimstamatic]

Great video. I've lived in the Charlotte metro for more than 20 years and have experienced it's incredible growth. The bad: I think I've seen continuous highway construction for the entire time I've been here. The good: While neighborhood walkability is rare, there are a number of greenways in CLT, and they are constructing a 30+ mile greenway through the city, which should be finished in four years. The hope: if they would spend less on asphalt and more on light rail, it might actually catch on someday. As for the residential density issue. It was going in a good direction until the 2008 crash. In the early 2000s, I was working on marketing for some high-rise condos in and around uptown that subsequently became rentals when the economy tanked. Back then, people were putting deposits on these condos like they were buying lottery tickets, thinking they would flip them before the buildings were even completed. If 2008 hadn't happened, there's a good chance that condo ownership would have boomed in and around uptown. Now it's mostly new apartment rentals to house the 20-somethings who work for the big financial companies. That is certainly spawning a lot of dining and entertainment development, which is great, but that's why we need all of these parking garages.

[@zachanderson4573]

As someone who grew up in CLT, its nice having southend/Noda/Uptown. But its nice to go back to an actual house with a backyard for your day to day. Its mostly younger people who live in those denser areas.

[@modernwize]

I've lived in Charlotte, Atlanta, DC and a few other cities. Charlotte doesn't belong on any list. It's a place to start your career or settle down and have a family. From the beginning, people go there to get away from city life. Heads Carolina, tails California.

[@DamienSullivan-u3u]

Charlotte is a wonderful city and has a ton of history. The problems Charlotte faces are mostly due to the state it resides in. Though a large portion of the state’s GDP comes from Charlotte, you wouldn’t be able to tell just by looking at its state funded infrastructure especially when you compare the roads in and around Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, and Winston Salem to Charlotte. Charlotte has a closer relationship with South Carolina than it does with North Carolina in my opinion when you look at the highway interchanges in Rockhill, SC (due to its proximity to Charlotte) to soon as you cross the boarder into North Carolina, you can instantly recognize how much the state cares. Far as history goes, Charlotte has tons. Only reason it’s not on display is because 1, you may not know where to look. 2 you better hurry up and look because we love location over structures, so we’ll demolish a historical building to construct something new and shiny. So, all the history lives in memories, museums, and social media posts and forums. I love Charlotte, My parents moved here in 1973 and I came three years later and the change and growth I’ve seen in my life is nothing short of miraculous

[@davidkaseykelly]

Re: "Charlotte has a closer relationship with South Carolina than it does with North Carolina in my opinion" Where do we even begin, 1. North Carolina is the 9th largest state in the United States at 11 million residents. 2. SC ranks 25th with 5 million. Not even half the size. 3. NC is widely known as "the good roads state" maintaining 80,483 miles if state roads. 4. SC maintains 40,000. How anyone can even begin to compare the two as if they were they same or similar I can't begin to imagine, yet here you are. I live here and love the city, but there is way more to NC than just the QC.

[@DamienSullivan-u3u]

@@davidkaseykelly not to come off as argumentative, but NC became known as the good roads state in like 1900, at that time having a paved road at all in South was a miracle. As for the comparisons between North & South Carolinas populations and infrastructure, that’s not my point. I’m talking about the way Charlotte has such a connected presence with another state. It’s my opinion, we can debate it without making it personal.

[@zjohnson870]

I would love to see a video like this about Jacksonville, FL. It’s the largest city (by land area) in the continental U.S. Basically anywhere you want to go is 20+ minutes away, and public transit is almost nonexistent. Occasionally I’ll bike to a destination near me, but the massive stroads (like Beach/Atlantic Blvd) and lack of good bike infrastructure make it super hostile.

[@Mark-uh3un]

Biking on Atlantic Boulevard is basically a death wish

[@cardenasr.2898]

The Jacksonville Sky train or whatever it's called really amazes me, why would they build an elevated train that is so short that is almost guaranteed to have small ridership

[@05645ci]

I lived at Jax Beach and worked in Jax from 2004-2010. I think Jax is a geographical delight; great location on the St Johns river and right on the Atlantic Coast, awesome climate with very mild winters and most months in the 60's to 80's. The downside is that the city lacks a vibrant upper middle class economy and presence of major companies and employers. Avg income is low due to the absence of abundant white collar employment and a majority of residents in blue collar jobs and a large military and retired military population. It's also a victim of Florida having the Miami, Tampa, and Orlando metro areas as three of the USA's largest metro area's dominating the state's attention and resources. I loved the climate and the small town vibe while I was there. Jax Beach was a great small beach town in which to live, walkable and bikeable. To me, the Jax area is one of the most undiscovered and best places to live in the entire sunbelt. Blows my mind that it's not a boom town post pandemic as property values are low compared to other cities on the coast with this climate. Selah

[@tomselek1000]

I walked some of those same spots when I was in Charlotte and it was stark how different the friendliness to walkers was between wards. They are really making great strides. I really liked downtown Charlotte and the tree canopy they used. Great video as always!

[@strongtowns]

11:56 should have been the thumbnail IMO

[@APEXistud]

I’ve been in East Charlotte since I moved here in 2019 and this place has a lot of potential. The main challenge that this city faces is new-Charloteans/transplants want to sustain its grown, but older-Charloteans don’t want the city to change and grow. The main roadblock is a we are a Blue/progressive city in a Red/Conservative state. Many of the surrounding cities are also conservative and want to maintain their small town feel. Although it can be appealing, the world and the south isn’t getting any smaller and what was once affordable will be exploited by growth. Better to plan ahead and establish the building block for incoming growth.

[@BEdwardStover]

Paying an artist to paint a parking garage is much better than the parking garage underneath. Art always looks better than bare concrete. Art even looks better than a few bricks thrown on the exterior of parking garages here and there, which looks better than bare concrete, but not lots better. Underground parking would be better but it is expensive. The cost is basically only viable in new construction in very dense urban areas.

[@Skzzlemister]

More of these city visits!! I like to see how urbanism is taking root in a lot of places in the US where you wouldn't expect it.

[@adam.cosgrove]

Great video! I saw this on KZbin, but as a recent Nebula subscriber I'm excited to dig more into this series. As someone who gre up in a North Charlotte suburb and now lives in Plaza Midwood, I live how complicated the urbanization of Charlotte is every day. For my part, the reason I live in Plaza is that it's a place where all of my main needs are met within a mile of my apartment (most of which are meetable without walking along Central Ave). South End is certainly more expansive in this respect, but even neighborhoods like NoDa don't have grocery stores within walking distance, which hinders progress for car-free neighborhoods. As someone else mentioned, the public transport system has been gutted by state legislation and incompetence from the people in charge of running it FOR YEARS. While it's great to have the Gold Line up and running, the public rail system was slated to be much more complete by now and has been delayed due to funding moving to building highway lanes and Norfolk Southern holding on to rail lines for once-weekly trains. Charlotte being listed as one of the most unwalkable places in the country is a function of the scale of its city limits. As someone who travels for work and visits a lot of similarly sized cities, the walkability of Charlotte is better than many of the towns in the midwest and west ranked above it. The city is still far from being where it should've been by now, but there is a lot being done to rectify that. At the end of the day, though, I'm not sure that Charlotte will ever shake its tendency for having walkable neighborhoods that are disconnected from each other without proper work by the City to beef up the public transportation system. Thanks for visiting and I'm excited to watch more of your series!

[@Khanfuzed1]

I visited Charlotte as a random side trip. I walked away thinking this is one of the few places I could live relatively happy in the south. It’s an interesting place!

[@Therealstrikeforce]

East coast*

[@s3cunit]

Hi - I can give you some color about why someone might not want to live in an area like South End - kids and pets. I lived in Uptown with a dog, wife, and 2 kids and it's such a huge, huge hassle. There is housing with an acceptable sized yard within walking distance, but it's 3x-4x per sqft what you will pay in the suburbs and just not within financial reach of even what one would consider the "upper" middle class. Finally, there will always be people who don't want to be jammed up "on-top" of so many people, and who value peace and quiet, which you just can't get when you live so densely. I've been in Charlotte since 2015 and the change I've witnessed in that time is incredible, they really are trying to give people a viable option if they want to live in a dense, walkable area, but also accommodate those of us who actually like living out in the 'burbs with a huge yard and houses far enough apart you really do feel like you have some privacy.

[@jckclt]

I've lived in Charlotte for 17 years. This is what you need to know about Charlotte: 1. Any history, tradition or culture CLT has gets torn down for big buildings the city can tax more and create more revenue. 2. There is no food scene. Its getting better, but Charlotte is not known for any food. There is not GREAT BBQ in Charlotte. There's good BQQ, but nothing better than. Ask any person who lives in Charlotte what restaurant they would recommend for someone who is visiting, and more than likely they will say a chain 3. The sheer amount of apartment buildings and breweries is off the charts. Its downright silly and more are going up every couple of months 4. Like most cities, Charlotte has grown too fast and the City doesn't carry about the infrasturcture needed to support all of the new transplants 5. Raleigh is the capitol of NC, and gets most of the tax money. Raleigh gets the new roads, bypasses, lane widenings, etc. Charlotte is treated like a 2nd class citizen 6. The Charlotte airport can get you almost anywhere direct, but it will cost you. You can fly from Greenville and Raleigh through Charlotte and to your destination for much cheaper. It doesn't make any sense, but us Charlotte residents are eating the costs 7. Uptown (downtown) Charlotte has really died off. South End is where the night life and young people want to be 8. The economy and pay is outstanding here. Which is why the housing is so expensive 9. Taxes are mostly ok, with the State income tax actually going down the next 4 years. However, the country Charlotte is in, Mecklenburg just did a huge properly tax reasses and its downright scary how much its gone up 10. Chick Filet and QT are important down here. If you know you know 11. Traffic is horrendous and is getting worse. If you live in North of Harris BLVD, thoughts and prayers on your commute on 77. If you live in Pineville, Ballentyne or Mathews, good luck. 12. Location, location, location. 3 hours to the beach (Charleston) and 2 hours to the mountains (Asheville). 2.5 hours to skiing. Hard to beat that. Greenville, Columbia, Charleston, Savanah, Mrytle Beach, Wilmington, Raleigh, Ashville, Johnson City all within 4 hours. 13. Nuclear power. You have a nuclear plant on Lake Norman to the North and on Lake Wylie to the South. You won't feel a thing if one blows, don't worry.

[@scpatl4now]

Cities like Charlotte and Atlanta that have no real geographic limitations (mountains and rivers) just invite the sprawl which becomes worse with every freeway built to accommodate the sprawl (GA 400 would be a prime example in Atlanta)

[@TommyJonesProductions]

Only because we keep subsidizing the automobile with massive highways and giveaways to the oil companies to keep gas prices artificially low. If we stopped subsidizing the suburbs, they would die from infrastructure decay. They don't produce enough revenue per acre out there to maintain their infrastructure.

[@spartan117zm]

Lol ever heard of the Catawba River? Guess not.

[@UserName-ts3sp]

@@spartan117zmnot a major geographic limitation

[@NahtShure]

@@spartan117zm it's literally nowhere near the metro area.

[@scpatl4now]

@@spartan117zm 10 miles away, 2 miles outside the city limits

[@Heavywall70]

I lived in NoDa right when the real population explosion happened Being literally the only blue collar guy living in a near uptown had massive advantages in that I was always driving against traffic headed towards the power plants I worked at.

[@jacob13036]

Charlottes main issues came from its crazy growth during the 90s and 2000s. I grew up in a small town just west of Charlotte during that time and you could see the city getting closer day by day. Nobody was prepared for a population explosion like that.

[@universaljustice7376]

Odell saw it coming

[@nisto1518]

I very much appreciate your perspective. I'm a second-year master's student at UNC Chapel Hill in City and Regional Planning, and I always value constructive viewpoints. I think yours are spot on about Charlotte. Thank you for taking the time to make this video, and really for your effort in all your material.

[@Dimewick21]

Just went to Charlotte for the first time. I was actually quite impressed by a few things: 1) As you mentioned, the South End is a very unique bit of urbanism. I can’t think of another example of what is basically a linear, several station long, contiguous, vibrant TOD. The light rail making up the spine, with walking/biking paths on both sides, flanked by condos and apartments of all masses, bars, restaurants, and shops. 2) I did like that the Gold Line streetcar is an actual linear line and not a weird, circuitous “modern” streetcar linking random places (ie Atlanta, OKC). It actually seems like a useful bit of transit infrastructure, linking densifying areas to the urban core, and not just an inherently useless tourist attraction or development catalyst. 3) Blue line seems pretty well designed as far as a having a good amount of grade separation. It seemed like at the few grade crossings, the light rail had full priority. Definitely faster than light rails I’ve taken in Denver, Portland, Houston, Dallas, etc. The things I really hated: the great walking/biking paths of the south end did not connect to the great walking/biking paths of uptown. Once you get to I-277, the paths abruptly end and to get between downtown and the south end , you have to get on the scary street grid. How is there not a pedestrian bridge over the 277?? And a hated how painfully slow the Gold Line was through Uptown. Come on, give this thing it’s own lanes already. I know street car technically doesn’t get its own lanes but really at that point it’s just a slightly more comfortable articulated bus that cannot get around something that may be blocking it. Overall, I was very impressed. Great to see a city doing so much right after decades of doing everything wrong. Once the light rail is built to the airport, I think CLT will be quite easy to live car-free.

[@liskaliska9148]

I will say, as a resident, they are building a bridge to connect the rail trail into uptown, and to its uptown section. Google the Queensbridge development :)

[@remsee1608]

They are building a pedestrian bridge over 277 but it wont be done until like 2027

[@manzell]

Camp North End reminds me A LOT of "The Foundry" in St. Louis - which is more walk-accessible than CNE, but it's so clearly designed with nearly 100% car-usage in mind. It seems like the newest evolution of the Shopping Mall Dream of the 60's. I wonder how many other similar projects around the country there are?

[@loriallen67]

Same observations. Well said.

[@joshbenner2784]

What's crazy is the owner of CNE has pushed hard for the Red Line, ride sharing/busses to reduce their parking requirements, has bike share, and even tried to get a bike lane built(unfortunately the city built a shit painted lane instead of protected).

[@realteamme]

Seen a bunch of your videos but I think I actually like this format the best. It's a more in-depth look at one place through the lens of urbanism, and if you did more it might even inspire my travel plans.

[@modalmixture]

I definitely would not want to live in a place like Charlotte, but at what point do we accept that a lot of people apparently do? For a whole lot of people, being able to live in a big house with a big private yard and get in an air-conditioned SUV to drive to the grocery store or the Home Depot without having to walk or bike in hot sticky or cold weather is their idea of the good life, and who are we to tell them otherwise?

[@JesusManera]

I don't think it's about telling people how to live, it's about building better infrastructure so people have more options. For example, if every house in these sprawling car dependent suburbs was also within 15 minutes walking distance of a train station and shops, with safe walkable streets, then those who want a big house and private yard and SUV are literally not losing a single thing (in fact, their property value will only increase, and the traffic on their commute will decrease, so it's win-win even for them) but people will just no longer be FORCED to drive, because there will be more options! Unfortunately there seems to be a culture in the US where people don't like "others" benefitting from things. So even if they still benefit (even indirectly) themselves, if somebody else benefits more then they oppose it. Which is pretty ridiculous.

[@phillipgussman4588]

Thank you Ray! Long time fan, first time poster. As a local I was thrilled to hear from friends that you were enjoying your time in Charlotte. I would also say many of us Local Urbanists really enjoyed hearing that what we have been working towards for the last 25 years or so was appreciated by some of the thought leaders (influencers?!) We frequently view our shortcomings as we strive to re-imagine Charlotte as a walkable/equitable city accessible to all, it felt great to hear back that at least we were doing some of it from the experts. And yes as a 25 year bus rider we have much to improve on the transit front, but I think we are finally making some headway. Thank you Again! Come back in a few years I bet there will be more to like!

[@jonathanwest6564]

As a long-distance tractor trailer driver, When I want better food or atmosphere then fast food I have to walk. You get a high tolerance for what is walkable, plus I really want to get off my butt. No sidewalk and five miles, I can do that. Funny is usually I'm more afraid of walking though some of the neighborhoods around truck stops at night then cars. Cars are predictable.

[@richdevita]

I LOVE Charlotte. It is getting better every single year as far as transportation, walkability, etc.

[@jakobsmith4046]

Its awful how they build these tiny enclaves of walkability, that most people cant afford to live in so we're stuck in areas built for cars that have no light rail and just buses

[@MbisonBalrog]

Cars and lanes are what grant affordability. Because you can freely move around no area can corner demand. You can live where ever you can. This is of course only to certain point. CA is expensive cuz everyone wants live there

[@Urbanhandyman]

For thirty seconds of the video, starting at 10:28, CityNerd became CityPentUpRage. It was exhilarating yet mildly terrifying at the same time.

[@phillygrunt2154]

If that’s pent up rage you literally haven’t seen what it looks like irl

[@Urbanhandyman]

@@phillygrunt2154 It's different for each person. For CityNerd, I thought he was about to get up and punch the camera. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

[@stewartdillard7199]

That particular Park and Ride deck you are talking about is mainly to support people coming into the city from the north for events or work. I live closer to Raleigh, and when I head to a Panthers or Hornets game, we always park there and ride into the city. This cuts down on the parking needed around the entertainment areas in downtown and is extremely efficient. Speaking of Raleigh, that is a great example of sprawl and I wish they would implement a similar light rail system in the area and then further build out a local rail network between Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, and Charlotte. This would give most of the state access to public transportation, link the major airports, and reduce the amount of cars on I-40/85.

[@myrtlebeachsara]

I'm from Charlotte! I appreciate the density of our urban areas, i still have to find to these areas but love them!

[@sweet-keeks]

Charlottean here; Firstly, I appreciate seeing the notable neighborhoods in your video. Charlotte is easy to dismiss as a car-centric city (which in some ways is definitely true), but we also have smaller mixed use neighborhoods. I'm fortunate to live in NoDa. Where I can walk, ride my bike, or use the light rail for anything I need. My partner lives near the ligh rail in South End, so between the two of us we rarely have to drive. Another gem off of the light rail is the Independent Picture House; Sugar Creek station + 5 minute walk. One day, I would love to live in a "proper" mixed-use urban city. But for now, Charlotte is just fine.

[@harrisonthorburn7415]

It's important to remember that most of these "lousy" cities like Charlotte, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles etc. are barely 100 years into their urbanization. European cities are 1000+ years old, they've had time to rebuild and try different development approached. There's always the option to rip things down and try again and most places in the US probably will.

[@angellacanfora]

Here in LA, we're waiting for the Big One to do the ripping...

[@Slame333]

Great comment. Will also add that European cities are also smaller than most American cities in terms of the space and land they have to work with. So they were kind of forced into urbanizing earlier than US cities.

[@TinLeadHammer]

It is important to remember that LA had a vast streetcar network before it was scrapped to put up five-lane freeways.

[@harrisonthorburn7415]

@@TinLeadHammer I don't think honestly the street cars were ever designed to be a long term transit system. They were a gimmick to sell the properties developed along the route. But then again, so was the Metropolitan Line in London.

[@Riel_Rami]

​@Slame333 the reason American cities are bigger in the first place tho is because we didn't urbanize like they did tho. That argument don't make much sense to me.

[@greenwaybikexploring]

I'm not far: in the suburbs of Raleigh. I and my family love to visit Charlotte. I've had some work travel that allowed me to use Amtrak rather than drive or fly. I've taken the family on Amtrak and driven with the family for weekend visits. It's not amazing in every sense, but it is enjoyable and different than Raleigh, so it feels like a nice place for a short vacation. Having the LYNX is superb for these short visits; we don't have to drive to all the locations we want to visit, and we can easily find food halls to try a mix of cuisine choices to select from. I honestly wish Raleigh and the Triangle were learning the value of the lite rail and TOD from Charlotte and applying those lessons to the suburbs of Raleigh. I get around by bike on the greenways, but I would love to get a lite rail that could alleviate some of the distance and enable more exploring.

[@robertgriffin9670]

To answer your question at 4:40. We like to build roads and use cars because we like the freedom to do and go where we want. We do not like to be held to bus schedules or get our food from door dash delivery drivers. Also, though many people do, many others don't work in front of a laptop, at home, for a living.

[@cubfan84]

Thank you for mentioning how particularly awful Charlotte red-lining is (native NW of CLT here).

[@theferalcollection]

Native Charlottean (Charlot-TEE-an) here. You can't talk about how there's all this urbanization and housing going up in Uptown without talking about the fact that the average rent is over $2100 for less than 1000 sq ft and that over 40% of the population makes less than $15/hour. Over 50% of Charlotteans are housing cost burdened - moving out of the city is one of the only ways to find more affordable housing. Less than 15% of housing in Charlotte is considered low-cost. What you're talking about isn't urbanization, it's gentrification. I have watched as NoDa has changed, even in just the past decade; families (black families) who lived there for generations were forced out. It's what's happening in South End due to those developments right now. I work there, and it is not a great to place to be unless you're there to party or shop. When it comes to public transportation, only the "sexy" light rail and trolleys, which serve only the wealthier communities, are prioritized, while our bus lines, what few we have, languish. There is just literally not an option for me to get from my suburban apartment to uptown using public transit unless I want to drive 11 miles out of the way to get a bus that will take an hour to get me to a place 12 miles from my home. sources on the stats: 2022 Charlotte-Meckleburg State of Housing Instability & Homelessness (SoHIH) Report & Uptown Charlotte Rental Market Trends from RentCafe (don't want to link in cases it gets flagged but very easy to google)

[@JoshuaFagan]

I appreciate how you were more positive on Charlotte. It's got a long, long way to go, but I love what they're doing with the light rail and heavy TOD. It's a relatively easy way to start transforming sprawling, hostile urban environments into welcoming, vibrant places that people actually want to go to and spend time in. More Sun Belt cities should follow suit.

[@mikehaywood1005]

I live in Charlotte (4th ward) without a car. I share many of your sentiments. Future planning looks hopeful, but you can tell Charlotte was planned to be a driving/commuting city. The light rail is quite easy to ride without a pass or ticket, I often get on the rail with no one checking my ticket (which I do buy, but I think many don’t). There’s a lot of work to be done here to make Charlotte a better urban area with transportation/walkable options.

[@keithnewton1966]

I have lived in the Charlotte area for 50yrs now and what a change I’ve seen in the last 20. Like most other small to medium size cities in the US, the only way in or out is by highways filled with vehicles. There needs to be a network of dedicated bike an pedestrian paths that can be used by the surrounding communities and those living in the city. Charlotte has come a long way but needs to keep improving.

[@chukaman]

Thank you for highlighting Charlotte. It is a city that has a current fight with the city and city planners and the state and CAR enthusiasts that cannot comprehend the need for urban spaces and urban zoning; it is what would help with stablizing the astronomical housing costs and shortage of housing in the area. Just a few months ago someone from a rural State legislature decided to try to nix a plan for another rail line...and that is basically a peek into some of the issues the City has; it is fighting many in the State that want to make Charlotte another boring car-dependent American city. ...and the Southeastern part of the US is already oversaturated with that... Some of us residents are praying that the City and State can have enough "urbanists" come together to make this place better because while driving is an option, it clearly is not the best option and nor should it ever be the ONLY option a citizen has at their disposal.