Construction near Wesley Chapel ES causes major traffic headaches

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By Gina Esposito

MONROE, N.C. — A construction zone, detour and school drop-off lines are causing major headaches for drivers in Union County.

[PHOTOS: Construction near Wesley Chapel Elementary causes major traffic headaches]

Parents are frustrated that a construction project less than two miles away is forcing drivers to detour next to Wesley Chapel Elementary School.

A contractor with the North Carolina Department of Transportation is building a roundabout at Beulah Church Road and Waxhaw-Indian Trail Road in Wesley Chapel.

The project was planned to wrap up by Aug.18, but utility delays and bad weather pushed back the project.

NCDOT officials expect the project won't be finished until mid-to-late September.

Since the intersection is closed, some of the traffic is being diverted to Wesley Chapel and Potter roads near Wesley Chapel Elementary School.

Parents have complained about the increase in traffic.

In 2016, NCDOT numbers showed 11,000 cars traveling through Beulah Church/Waxhaw-Indian Trail daily. Some of that traffic has been shifted to Wesley Chapel, where the intersection already sees 19,000 cars per day.

Officials with the Union County School District said the principal at Wesley Chapel notified parents weeks before classes started about the road closure and detours. The transportation department also adjusted bus routes to get around the closure and still get students to school on time.

NCDOT officials said they are pushing their contractor to finish the work as quickly as possible.

They hired off-duty deputies to work three hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon to help with traffic control.

One of the deputies has been stationed by the school. The other deputy works off Antioch Church Road and Wesley Chapel Road.

Parents said the traffic around the school has been terrible.

Gabe Sanchez said it took him 20 minutes to drop off his child at Wesley Chapel Elementary School because of the traffic.

“It’s bad, really bad,” Sanchez said.

The worst of the traffic was between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., just before school started.

“I think that the construction project has been slowing down the traffic lately,” parent Josh Black said. “It’s been helpful that they have had a sheriff out here directing traffic. That’s been making it a little easier to work with.”

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