North Carolina

[Roadsguy]

How many more Interstates does North Carolina need?

NCDOT: "Yes."

[snowc]

Lowercase stop sign.. In north Carolina. Can anyone guess where this is? Hint: Its a restaurant everyone loves.

[tolbs17]

Lowercase stop sign.. In north Carolina. Can anyone guess where this is? Hint: Its a restaurant everyone loves.

Chick-Fil-A?

[Dirt Roads]

Lowercase stop sign.. In north Carolina. Can anyone guess where this is? Hint: Its a restaurant everyone loves.

Chick-Fil-A?

Looks like the one at the (almost) new Chick-fil-A at South Square in Durham.  The one it replaced was previously a double drive-thru Checkers with no indoor seating.  Oh well, there's no indoors at the new one either due to their COVID-19 response.

[tolbs17]

I hate those stop signs.

[froggie]

(and not everyone loves Chik-Fil-A...)

[roadman65]

(and not everyone loves Chik-Fil-A...)

The Democrats for sure. 

[tolbs17]

(and not everyone loves Chik-Fil-A...)

My parents hate it.

[X99]

(and not everyone loves Chik-Fil-A...)

I get Chick-Fil-A Sauce packets mailed to me in Rapid City because the nearest one is five hours away in Sioux Falls.

[Rothman]

(and not everyone loves Chik-Fil-A...)

The Democrats for sure.

Interesting comment, that aligns acceptance of the LGBT community with the Democratic Party...

I would have thought that such was not tied to party lines:  Those that were concerned about Chick-Fil-A's anti-LGBT donations and those that were not.

[LM117]

Update on the I-26 improvement project.

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-25-i-26-henderson-county-butler-bridge.aspx

[LM117]

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-25-gastonia-interstate-85-interchange.aspx

​GASTONIA — Drivers should be on the lookout for a new traffic pattern at the Interstate 85 interchange with U.S. 321 in northern Gastonia tomorrow.

N.C. Department of Transportation contractors plan to open the new ramp from U.S. 321 South to I-85 North by Friday morning. The ramp is replacing the existing loop onto the northbound interstate, giving drivers more time to get up to speed and merge with interstate traffic.

The ramp was originally scheduled to open in November, but was delayed due to multiple weather events. The new I-85 South ramp to northbound U.S. 321 opened on Nov. 16.

Motorists should remember to use caution while adjusting to new traffic patterns.

[wdcrft63]

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-25-gastonia-interstate-85-interchange.aspx

​GASTONIA — Drivers should be on the lookout for a new traffic pattern at the Interstate 85 interchange with U.S. 321 in northern Gastonia tomorrow.

N.C. Department of Transportation contractors plan to open the new ramp from U.S. 321 South to I-85 North by Friday morning. The ramp is replacing the existing loop onto the northbound interstate, giving drivers more time to get up to speed and merge with interstate traffic.

The ramp was originally scheduled to open in November, but was delayed due to multiple weather events. The new I-85 South ramp to northbound U.S. 321 opened on Nov. 16.

Motorists should remember to use caution while adjusting to new traffic patterns.

Here are maps for this project:
https://www.ncdot.gov/projects/i-85-widening-gaston-county/Documents/us-321-interchange.pdf

[tolbs17]

I can see it's definitely part of 8-laining the highway.

[LM117]

The C.F. Harvey Parkway (NC-148) extension near Kinston from NC-58 to NC-11 is expected to open Monday morning.

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-26-lenoir-county-project-opens-early.aspx

[tolbs17]

The C.F. Harvey Parkway (NC-148) extension near Kinston from NC-58 to NC-11 is expected to open Monday morning.

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-26-lenoir-county-project-opens-early.aspx

Would definitely help get from Greenville to the Kinston shops faster (basically bypassing the downtown area which is a slum area).

[Dirt Roads]

The C.F. Harvey Parkway (NC-148) extension near Kinston from NC-58 to NC-11 is expected to open Monday morning.

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-26-lenoir-county-project-opens-early.aspx

Would definitely help get from Greenville to the Kinston shops faster (basically bypassing the downtown area which is a slum area).

AppleMaps jumped the gun and this section of NC-148 is already showing as open.

[sprjus4]

The C.F. Harvey Parkway (NC-148) extension near Kinston from NC-58 to NC-11 is expected to open Monday morning.

https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2021/2021-02-26-lenoir-county-project-opens-early.aspx

Took long enough. This will definitely change the way transportation goes in the area, and could bring some more traffic onto the existing sections of parkway.

[ARMOURERERIC]

Looking at a map, are there plans to extend the parkway south back to NC 11?  It would appear to be a logical choice, but it looks like there is a very environmentally sensitive area to the south.

[fillup420]

I find it strange that they relocated the small portion of US 70 to build the interchange with NC 148. It tripped me out the first time I drove through after it was completed.

[tolbs17]

Looking at a map, are there plans to extend the parkway south back to NC 11?  It would appear to be a logical choice, but it looks like there is a very environmentally sensitive area to the south.

https://connect.ncdot.gov/projects/planning/FeasibilityStudiesDocuments/Feasibility-Study_0802A_Report_2010.pdf

I assume you're talking about this project?

[ahj2000]

Looking at a map, are there plans to extend the parkway south back to NC 11?  It would appear to be a logical choice, but it looks like there is a very environmentally sensitive area to the south.

https://connect.ncdot.gov/projects/planning/FeasibilityStudiesDocuments/Feasibility-Study_0802A_Report_2010.pdf

I assume you're talking about this project?

I read that as take the parkway from its WESTERN terminus south to NC-11 on the SW side of Kinston. Extending the parkway west would help get more cars off the streets of Kinston though.

[Roadsguy]

Looking at a map, are there plans to extend the parkway south back to NC 11?  It would appear to be a logical choice, but it looks like there is a very environmentally sensitive area to the south.

https://connect.ncdot.gov/projects/planning/FeasibilityStudiesDocuments/Feasibility-Study_0802A_Report_2010.pdf

I assume you're talking about this project?

The selected alternative 1SB for the Kinston bypass will provide an all-freeway connection back over to NC 11 around the south side, though it won't at all be a high-speed interchange, and NC 11 to the south is undivided four lanes with a center turning lane and traffic signals for a few miles until it becomes divided again. I suspect if anything at all is done to create a proper NC 11 bypass for Kinston, it would just be extending the parkway south roughly along the red alternative line to seamlessly tie into NC 11. Even that seems a bit overkill, though, let alone another entire bypass around the east side. Considering NCDOT's financial troubles, I'd expect the most they do here is extend the parkway south and upgrade the middle segment to full Interstate standards, maybe rerouting NC 11 onto it (or replacing NC 148 with NC 11 Bypass).

- fixed URL code. -rmf67

[tolbs17]

https://connect.ncdot.gov/projects/planning/TPBCTP/Lenoir%20County/Lenoir%20County%20Highway%20Map.pdf

This is the most recent CTP map i can find. And there's no southern extension from the CF harvey parkway to NC 11. For the Kinston bypass, Alternative 1SB was chosen.

Also, at the interchange where I-42 is and where the NC 11 freeway is, I'm sure that would be a merging interchange.

https://www.ncdot.gov/projects/kinston-bypass/Documents/selected-alternative-page-6.pdf

But when looking at this document, it looks like they dropped that from further study and decided to make a freeway that extends east of the CF harvey parkway instead.

[The Ghostbuster]

Will existing NC 148 between US 258 and NC 58 be upgraded to freeway standards in the future, since the NC 148 extension is being built to freeway standards? Also, I doubt this was ever proposed, and probably isn't likely, perhaps NC 11 from NC 148's new eastern terminus to the new NC 11 bypass of Ayden, Winterville and Greenville could be upgraded to freeway standards to provide a seamless freeway route from NC 58 (and potentially US 70/Future Interstate 42) to US 264/future Interstate 587.