Not sure if my exhaustion from 5 hrs of sleep was doing the talking, but yesterday when I drove I-40 from Asheville to Statesville, it felt like the ugly stepchild road of North Carolina. It seemed busy, questionable shoulders in spots?, and in need of a repave. Also, I-77 was PACKED from Statesville to Charlotte at 6pm on a Saturday night. What's the deal here? Where are all these people coming from? Accumulation of traffic from I-40w, Va/WVa, and W-S?
I was driving from Nashville to Charlotte. I-40e to Knoxville, US 11W to Kingsport, short ride up to VA state line, then I-26 to Asheville, then I-240 loop (which sucks by the way), I-40e to I-77s.
I-26 north of Asheville is an amazing drive. The NC Welcome Center is a must-stop for anybody southbound. The scenic view is awesome, and the building is nice. The lady said they purposely blasted more mountain to make it as straight as possible, and an easier drive for the trucks. There aren't any ridiculous hairpin turns or grades. She basically said they wanted to make it much easier than I-40... modern engineering, and modern federal Interstate standards played a role in that.