Tree removal turns heads along Independence Boulevard

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Trees have been sliced, ground and roughly chopped along Independence Boulevard.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation told Channel 9 it is using a new way to clear trees.

“It’s like slashed, half-cut trees everywhere,” Charlotte resident Cassandra Morrison said.

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Crews are using a shinn cutter, which is used to grind tree from top to bottom.

The process doesn’t work well for larger trees, which is why many trees look half-done and are left for another crew to remove later on.

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“You would think they could come up with a better way,” Morrison said.

Channel 9 reporter Gina Esposito asked NCDOT spokesperson Jen Thompson if she understands why people think it looks weird.

“Of course. You have no branches, and then you just have a trunk, but it’s not going to look that way, not going to stay that way,” Thompson said.

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Thompson said trees are being trimmed along Independence Boulevard between Highway 51 and Village Lake Drive for safety reasons as a way to prevent snow and ice from causing limbs to fall.

Officials said they want to clear more space for drivers.

NCDOT officials said more projects like this could be more widespread in the Charlotte area.

They say after the trees are ground by the shinn cutter, crews will lay the material back along Independence Boulevard as mulch.

Thompson said they have to use the shinn cutter because the space they have to work with is difficult to maneuver and they don't want to disrupt traffic.

“We've got trees and we've got Duke power lines. too, so it’s been a challenge to do the removal process,” Thompson said.

NCDOT officials said they will eventually remove those trees that look like they've been cut, but crews are only allowed to work Monday through Friday during non-peak hours.

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