CHARLOTTE, NC – People living near Mountain Island Lake are happy a new exit off I-485 is open.

Exit 18 at Oakdale Road opened Sunday night. It’s intended to reduce traffic back-ups near 485 and the Brookshire.

But some resident worry it won’t do enough to relieve congestion on Mt. Holly-Huntersville Road.

We still saw long traffic back-ups Tuesday night off the new exit.

“It’s nice in that you avoid the exit at Highway 16 and 485. That exit, sometimes it backs up onto the shoulder and causes accidents,” says Northwest Charlotte resident Mark Shaw.

“This is only about a mile differential on 485, so folks won’t have to travel that extra distance to get down to 16,” says Jen Thompson with NCDOT.

The are some things people at the new exit are having to get used to, including multiple traffic circles.

“The double roundabout situation is a little weird,” says Northwest Charlotte resident Trey Richardson.

But DOT officials say they are safer.

“You can go through a roundabout at a slower speed like 15 mile an hour average and you’re constantly moving,” Thompson says.

Neighbors would also like to see more lanes on Mount-Holly Huntersville road right off the new exit.

Some worry despite recent improvements, the infrastructure won’t be able to keep up.

“We’ve got this Riverbend development coming in next door that is going to increase congestion exponentially in this area and I’m afraid it’s just not going to be enough to alleviate it,” Shaw says.