This Interstate Exit Is so Dangerous It’s Getting Its Own Video Game

Sometimes, you have to laugh to keep from crying. That’s how Charlotte-based video game developer Mike Ramirez is coping with the pain of the infamous exit 3A on I-277. He’s working on a game that lets players experience the fear, danger, and frustration of exit 3A if they dare, but it has me wondering: Could a highway exit truly be so bad that someone makes a video game about it?

Almost every Charlotte local thinks so, by the looks of it.

“Is it like the ’70s and ’80s game The Oregon Trail, in which you die just about every time you play?” asked one Redditor. “Rated MA for violence and profanity,” said another.

OK, that sounds pretty terrible. But what makes the infamous exit so dangerous? As you exit I-277 via 3A, you have to somehow cross three lanes of traffic while incoming cars try merging from 12th Street to make a right onto North Davidson Street in just 220 feet. Even if you aren’t making the right, merging with that traffic is a nightmare and it’s become one of the state’s most dangerous, difficult roads.

It’s not exactly surprising that this piece of infrastructure fails to handle modern traffic. It’s an outdated exit plan developed in the 1960s. The North Carolina Department of Transportation expected 2,100 cars to use the exit daily by 1995; however, according to Charlotte Magazine, 12,000 drivers took 3A every day as of 2022.

But it isn’t just the sketchy, outdated road design. It’s the drivers, too. Countless Charlotte natives complain about temp tag-wearing Nissan Altimas making dangerous lane changes or trucks letting cargo fall out of their beds. One Redditor asked when the Altima DLC was going to drop, while another told Ramirez, “Don’t forget to include unexpected objects on 277. I’ve seen gas tanks, furniture, ladders, large pieces of car… I was in a multi-car accident when the people beside me hit an axle on 277. (sic)”

Back to the game itself. Ramirez puts the player in control of a cargo truck which they then have to drive down I-277, exit on 3A, and make the treacherous right onto North Davidson before time runs out, all without spilling your hilariously loose cargo. You even get to choose your freight, like beer kegs, comically large soccer balls, and—my personal favorite—arcade machines. Using the Bevy game engine, both the vehicles and cargo have funny physics, so the truck will fly up in the air during a crash and the cargo will spill out onto the road, causing even more vehicular mayhem.

This looks like a blast, even for non-Charlotte natives. But for those who live in the area and have to take exit 3A regularly, it’s a cathartic way to laugh at and have fun with the thing you hate most about your day.

Got tips? Send ’em to tips@thedrive.com

The post This Interstate Exit Is so Dangerous It’s Getting Its Own Video Game appeared first on The Drive.