I-40 in North Carolina

[cowboy_wilhelm]

I don't know if y'all are talking about something else, but it looks like nothing but drainage repairs for the I-40 WB ramp. As stated, the ramp is not being widened to three lanes. Previous curb and gutter on the inside of the ramp are gone. Drop inlets are covered or gone. Historical Google Street View reveals several clogged or failed inlets. A steel drainage pipe near the creek on the inside of the ramp has been partially cut out and now has wing walls at the outlet. There are new drop inlets and rip-rap near I-85 southbound west of the overpass ramp to 40-EB. The outside shoulder was reinforced to support traffic while work occurred along the inside shoulder.

[cowboy_wilhelm]

It's wild that multiple people thought it'd be OK to drop a lane for a ramp that carried an average 137 vehicles daily in 2025. Westbound count shows approximately 36,000, so 99.6% of traffic getting throttled from three lanes to two. It would have required the bridge widening, a lot of fill, and lengthening culverts and pipes, but nothing major considering everything else that has been done within the project limits. I'm guessing NCDOT were expecting a fight with impacts to the state natural area and it wasn't worth delaying the project further.

It doesn't help that everyone gets into a single file line in the left lane about 2 miles before the merge to 85. The lane doesn't merge for almost a half mile after joining 85, but everyone is scared to drive in the right lane anymore. Plus everyone will bail from the right lane as soon as they see the "right lane exit only" sign. Extending the lane towards Exit 161 would help some and probably the next best solution, but I'm anticipating a lot of nuisance congestion here.

[Dirt Roads]

I don't know if y'all are talking about something else, but it looks like nothing but drainage repairs for the I-40 WB ramp. As stated, the ramp is not being widened to three lanes. Previous curb and gutter on the inside of the ramp are gone. Drop inlets are covered or gone. Historical Google Street View reveals several clogged or failed inlets. A steel drainage pipe near the creek on the inside of the ramp has been partially cut out and now has wing walls at the outlet. There are new drop inlets and rip-rap near I-85 southbound west of the overpass ramp to 40-EB. The outside shoulder was reinforced to support traffic while work occurred along the inside shoulder.

The location being discussed is actually [east] of the I-40 westbound [northbound] overpass.  But I suspect that you are correct that the issue is related to drainage, perhaps from the eastmost side of the bridge itself.  The overpass bridge and the rest of the ramp are sloped hard to the northwest, so there doesn't appear to be any drainage towards I-85 in the original configuration.  I may have mentioned this upstream, but it is also possible that NCDOT has installed power cables for lighting in this cut.

By the way, it appears that the last two instances of closures of the I-85 [westbound] ramp -to- I-40 eastbound [southbound] were related to the excavation alongside the I-40 westbound [northbound] overpass.  Last week, the removal of rocks and brush were coming back down towards I-85 and crossing over the [real life] ramp. 

[jdunlop]

It's wild that multiple people thought it'd be OK to drop a lane for a ramp that carried an average 137 vehicles daily in 2025. Westbound count shows approximately 36,000, so 99.6% of traffic getting throttled from three lanes to two. It would have required the bridge widening, a lot of fill, and lengthening culverts and pipes, but nothing major considering everything else that has been done within the project limits. I'm guessing NCDOT were expecting a fight with impacts to the state natural area and it wasn't worth delaying the project further.

It doesn't help that everyone gets into a single file line in the left lane about 2 miles before the merge to 85. The lane doesn't merge for almost a half mile after joining 85, but everyone is scared to drive in the right lane anymore. Plus everyone will bail from the right lane as soon as they see the "right lane exit only" sign. Extending the lane towards Exit 161 would help some and probably the next best solution, but I'm anticipating a lot of nuisance congestion here.

The 2024 AADT Map shows 29,500, which is down from the 2022 number of 34K.  (Do you have access to the 2025 data, which I believe is due to be released publicly soon?)

What I find disturbing is that the public hearing maps linked above by Dirt Roads shows a 2018 AADT on I-40 (east of the interchange) of 47K and projected 2040 volume of 58K, while the 2018 AADT figures show that volume at 68K.  I have to assume somebody dusted off the I-3306A plans from when it was originally drafted (circa 2008) and only updated the years and not the AADT.  I can imagine the Division didn't want to widen/rebuild the WB40 bridge, but the volume really is off and calls for three lanes on that bridge/ramp.

[cowboy_wilhelm]

It's wild that multiple people thought it'd be OK to drop a lane for a ramp that carried an average 137 vehicles daily in 2025. Westbound count shows approximately 36,000, so 99.6% of traffic getting throttled from three lanes to two. It would have required the bridge widening, a lot of fill, and lengthening culverts and pipes, but nothing major considering everything else that has been done within the project limits. I'm guessing NCDOT were expecting a fight with impacts to the state natural area and it wasn't worth delaying the project further.

It doesn't help that everyone gets into a single file line in the left lane about 2 miles before the merge to 85. The lane doesn't merge for almost a half mile after joining 85, but everyone is scared to drive in the right lane anymore. Plus everyone will bail from the right lane as soon as they see the "right lane exit only" sign. Extending the lane towards Exit 161 would help some and probably the next best solution, but I'm anticipating a lot of nuisance congestion here.

The 2024 AADT Map shows 29,500, which is down from the 2022 number of 34K.  (Do you have access to the 2025 data, which I believe is due to be released publicly soon?)

What I find disturbing is that the public hearing maps linked above by Dirt Roads shows a 2018 AADT on I-40 (east of the interchange) of 47K and projected 2040 volume of 58K, while the 2018 AADT figures show that volume at 68K.  I have to assume somebody dusted off the I-3306A plans from when it was originally drafted (circa 2008) and only updated the years and not the AADT.  I can imagine the Division didn't want to widen/rebuild the WB40 bridge, but the volume really is off and calls for three lanes on that bridge/ramp.

NCDOT Traffic Count Data System

[jdunlop]

I had an old link to arcgis map that I guess was updated this year, and the legacy site was still active.  Looks like the 2025 data was released two weeks ago.  (Fairly standard timeframe.)

Thanks for the link.

[bob7374]

NCDOT issued a press release today saying thay the I-85 ramp to I-40 will be closed now for another 2 months. to be opened again in late November. The stated reason is for "road widening and bridge work." I take it that does not mean bridge widening work. They have included a link to the project's public input page, if you want to forward a comment or question to the project team: https://publicinput.com/I-40-Orange-County

Press release at:
https://www.ncdot.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/2026/2026-09-14-I85-ramp-closure-orange.aspx

[Dirt Roads]

Keep in mind that the AADT traffic count numbers for I-85 and I-40 east and south of the split vary widely over the past 20 years or so, due to a number of construction projects between The Split and Research Triangle Park.  Also, there is an imbalance on I-40 traffic count numbers heading toward The Split versus heading away from The Split.  Since much of the weekday traffic is heading to/from RTP, they simply pick whichever route has less congestion at certain times of the day. 

Note that NCDOT doesn't have an exact comparison on each side of The Split; the data for I-40 includes traffic coming from Old NC-86 (Exit 261).   ((If the data is realistic for all six legs of The Split, the 2025 traffic count volumes appear to be slightly less [south] of Old NC-86 as compared to the four legs that comprise the I-40 side)).  Relative increases are in bold; decreases are in gray (which is not showing up with enough contrast on my computer).

Year	I-85	I-40
2002	41,000	47,000
2003	36,000	45,000
2004	41,000	45,000
2005	39,000	46,000
2006	37,000	49,000
2007	40,000	54,000
2008	36,000	52,000
2009	38,000	58,000
2010	38,000	56,000
2011	33,000	56,000
2012	36,000	56,000
2013	37,000	59,000
2014	39,000	63,000
2015	43,000	58,000
2016	45,000	68,000
2017	51,000	69,000
2018	52,000	68,000
2019	52,500	63,000
2020 (Covid)	44,000	55,000
2021	No data	No data
2022	No data	No data
2023	53,500	61,000
2024	55,000	63,000
2025	55,000	63,000

I would anticipate a big change in the traffic counts on the I-40 side of The Split once the widening project is complete.  Which makes the concern that both <cowboy-wilhelm> and <jdunlop> perhaps even more of a concern.  Right now, both I-40 and I-85 are a big traffic mess going up Occoneechee Mountain in the evenings (it gets pretty bad on I-40 just past Exit 270 sometimes before 1PM).  With the additional lane, I would hope that I-40 will get back to free flow in the evenings and take a lot of the pressure off of I-85.

All that being said, if there are any major issues with congestion at the lane drop approaching the merge, it wouldn't be surprising to see the evening traffic spread back over to the I-85 side if the problem gets to be too bad.

[fillup420]

Keep in mind that the AADT traffic count numbers for I-85 and I-40 east and south of the split vary widely over the past 20 years or so, due to a number of construction projects between The Split and Research Triangle Park.  Also, there is an imbalance on I-40 traffic count numbers heading toward The Split versus heading away from The Split.  Since much of the weekday traffic is heading to/from RTP, they simply pick whichever route has less congestion at certain times of the day. 

Note that NCDOT doesn't have an exact comparison on each side of The Split; the data for I-40 includes traffic coming from Old NC-86 (Exit 261).  ((If the data is realistic for all six legs of The Split, the 2025 traffic count volumes appear to be slightly less [south] of Old NC-86 as compared to the four legs that comprise the I-40 side)).  Relative increases are in bold; decreases are in gray (which is not showing up with enough contrast on my computer).

Year	I-85	I-40
2002	41,000	47,000
2003	36,000	45,000
2004	41,000	45,000
2005	39,000	46,000
2006	37,000	49,000
2007	40,000	54,000
2008	36,000	52,000
2009	38,000	58,000
2010	38,000	56,000
2011	33,000	56,000
2012	36,000	56,000
2013	37,000	59,000
2014	39,000	63,000
2015	43,000	58,000
2016	45,000	68,000
2017	51,000	69,000
2018	52,000	68,000
2019	52,500	63,000
2020 (Covid)	44,000	55,000
2021	No data	No data
2022	No data	No data
2023	53,500	61,000
2024	55,000	63,000
2025	55,000	63,000

I would anticipate a big change in the traffic counts on the I-40 side of The Split once the widening project is complete.  Which makes the concern that both <cowboy-wilhelm> and <jdunlop> perhaps even more of a concern.  Right now, both I-40 and I-85 are a big traffic mess going up Occoneechee Mountain in the evenings (it gets pretty bad on I-40 just past Exit 270 sometimes before 1PM).  With the additional lane, I would hope that I-40 will get back to free flow in the evenings and take a lot of the pressure off of I-85.

All that being said, if there are any major issues with congestion at the lane drop approaching the merge, it wouldn't be surprising to see the evening traffic spread back over to the I-85 side if the problem gets to be too bad.

its funny how the afternoon traffic bottleneck for both 40 west and 85 south happen right at the Orange County line. Almost like they should've widened both roads all the way to the 40/85 junction 10 years ago.

The 85 bottleneck at the 147 merge is a nightmare almost every afternoon. at the very least, extending a third lane to exit 170 (US 70) would be a modest improvement, since a lot of traffic takes the 147-85-70 route. I did for 3 years.

also, i often wondered who thought it was a wise move to, on 40 west, have the left lane end just beyond the 15/501 interchange. The reconfiguration to right lane exit only was a modest improvement, but the full widening will hopefully eliminate that choke point.

[Dirt Roads]

The 85 bottleneck at the 147 merge is a nightmare almost every afternoon. at the very least, extending a third lane to exit 170 (US 70) would be a modest improvement, since a lot of traffic takes the 147-85-70 route. I did for 3 years.

Reply is posted in the <I-85 North Carolina> thread.

[Dirt Roads]

Oops, I was planning to post this yesterday when I got distracted from the above subthread:

Yesterday, I was leaving Chapel Hill and was surprised that the new onramp from NC-86 -to- I-40 [northbound] at Whitfield Road is now open (and the old onramp is already mostly torn up).  I hadn't seen any news regarding the changeover, but Chapelboro News posted an article at the top of the month (yesterday's headline read "Opened on Saturday"; the article is dated September 1, 2026 so it would seem that the changeover was on August 29).

The new offramp from I-40 [northbound] -to- NC-86 southbound (New Exit 266A) is still under construction, but looks to be mostly complete.  Stay tuned.

[fillup420]

Oops, I was planning to post this yesterday when I got distracted from the above subthread:

Yesterday, I was leaving Chapel Hill and was surprised that the new onramp from NC-86 -to- I-40 [northbound] at Whitfield Road is now open (and the old onramp is already mostly torn up).  I hadn't seen any news regarding the changeover, but Chapelboro News posted an article at the top of the month (yesterday's headline read "Opened on Saturday"; the article is dated September 1, 2026 so it would seem that the changeover was on August 29).

The new offramp from I-40 [northbound] -to- NC-86 southbound (New Exit 266A) is still under construction, but looks to be mostly complete.  Stay tuned.

Is the final layout going to have exit 266 A/B? It seemed to me that they are relocating the ramps for westbound, but it would remain a single exit 266.

[Dirt Roads]

Oops, I was planning to post this yesterday when I got distracted from the above subthread:

Yesterday, I was leaving Chapel Hill and was surprised that the new onramp from NC-86 -to- I-40 [northbound] at Whitfield Road is now open (and the old onramp is already mostly torn up).  I hadn't seen any news regarding the changeover, but Chapelboro News posted an article at the top of the month (yesterday's headline read "Opened on Saturday"; the article is dated September 1, 2026 so it would seem that the changeover was on August 29).

The new offramp from I-40 [northbound] -to- NC-86 southbound (New Exit 266A) is still under construction, but looks to be mostly complete.  Stay tuned.

Is the final layout going to have exit 266 A/B? It seemed to me that they are relocating the ramps for westbound, but it would remain a single exit 266.

Don't know.  There's no logical reason to close the existing offramp (could still be used for northbound NC-86 traffic).  But that doesn't mean that NCDOT wants to maintain two offramps.

[jdunlop]

The plan I remember had two off-ramps from WB 40 to NC 86.  The original stayed in place, the loop to head south on 86 should tie into the signal at Whitford (instead of being a free-flow merge.)

[fillup420]

The plan I remember had two off-ramps from WB 40 to NC 86.  The original stayed in place, the loop to head south on 86 should tie into the signal at Whitford (instead of being a free-flow merge.)

i found this map that shows both original ramps being closed. However, i couldn't find a date for this map.

[edwaleni]

WBIR News has a highway construction update: