The Charlotte Observer Mark Washburn column
By Mark Washburn, The Charlotte Observer | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Roads, known in civilian life as
WBT decided to drop Neely's independent service, Roads Traffic, and take the work inside by adding its own staff of five, says
But Roads Traffic will continue, heading in a new direction. Motorists will be able to call for free recorded reports at 704-527-6237 (704-52-ROADS). Neely hopes to support the venture with ads.
He will launch the service
By January, when Neely plans to launch the phone service daily, he hopes to have a cell phone app that will instantly connect to motorists.
He's already noticed that phones and traffic seem to go together. When driving around in his Ford 150 pickup, he sees people picking up their cells whenever they get in a traffic jam, he says.
Roads Traffic has a staff of 10, including full-timers
As a boy growing up in
So the next season, Neely found himself beside Kidd, doing color commentary for football. He was 17.
Neely, 44, has had a number of careers including restaurant manager, orthopedic parts salesman and wanna-be sports agent. In 1997, he got a chance to fill in for "Captain Tim," who did traffic reports for the old "Thunder 96" in Charlotte.
"I'd already failed at a number of things, so I decided why not try this?" Neely says.
When that gig was up, Neely managed to land a few stations interested in his reports, then in 1998, WBT called and wanted an exclusive contract. Until then, WBT's traffic voice was "
He came up with the name Chuck Roads because he didn't want people to know his real name. "I didn't think people would like me," he says.
Airborne traffic reports continued on WBT until the terrorist attack of 2001, when the plane got grounded. Just as well, says Neely. It's easier to collect traffic information on the ground.
He and his staff monitor emergency frequencies for Mecklenburg and surrounding counties, have a live feed into
Over the 15 years he's monitored traffic, he's watched the changes in the region's road system, which has greatly expanded. Biggest trouble spots?
"One wreck in any of those place will cause a 10-mile backup," he says.
Probably the biggest accident during his watch was a tractor-trailer accident involving hazardous cargo about five years ago near the Cornelius exit on
Neely admits he's a traffic geek. "It's all I live and think about," he says. "It fits me. I love media, real-time information. I feel like I'm helping people."
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