Interstate 74
Looking southeast from the NC 177 overpass at Future I-74/U.S. 74 south of Hamlet. - 12/21/2008
The future roadways for I-73/74 where the Rockingham Bypass overtakes U.S. 220 north of Rockingham. - 08/14/2021
Interstate 74 was designated in North Carolina during the mid-1990s. Initially the route comprised just the U.S. 220 freeway between Asheboro and Candor in the central part of the state. Additional sections of preexisting freeway were added and signed as Future Interstate 74. This included U.S. 220 north from Asheboro to Randleman and a portion of the Hamlet bypass of U.S. 74. The Mt. Airy bypass fully opened in July 1999 and was signed as the I-74 mainline in 2001. U.S. 52 between the bypass end and Winston-Salem will double as Interstate 74 once upgrades to Interstate standards are completed. Until that time the route is only signed as a future I-74 Corridor.
New stretches of freeway for Interstate 74 opened at Rockingham (signed as Future I-74) in 2000, between the U.S. 74 Laurinburg bypass and N.C. 41 outside Lumberton in 2008, and between Candor and Ellerbe in January 2008. U.S. 311 between I-40 at Winston-Salem and U.S. 29-70 at High Point was upgraded to a freeway in portions between 1984 and 2004. This stretch of freeway was initially thought to become part of the I-73 corridor before that shifted east to Greensboro. New construction extended the High Point bypass southeast from Business Loop I-85 to Glenola as both relocated U.S. 311 and new Interstate 74 in November 2010. The preexisting portion northwest to I-40 at Winston-Salem was officially made part of Interstate 74 in March 2013 with the provision that substandard shoulders be expanded to the Interstate minimum of ten feet over a period of time.1 Work continued on new freeway between Glenola and Randleman from September 2008 to June 7, 2013 at a cost $99.7 million.2
Interstate 74 North Carolina Guides
East
Mount Airy - 11 photos
Winston-Salem to Randleman - 54 photos
Randleman to Biscoe - 8 photos
Rockingham to Hamlet - 13 photos
Laurinburg to Maxton - 34 photos
Lumberton - 36 photos
West
Lumberton - 14 photos
Laurinburg to Hamlet - 15 photos
Future I-74 - Rockingham - 28 photos
Rockingham to Star - 53 photos
Steeds to Asheboro - 56 photos
Randleman to Winston-Salem - 55 photos
Mount Airy - 20 photos
A $9.4 million project replaced the at-grade intersection joining U.S. 74/76 with Hallsboro Road with a diamond interchange. Numbered Exit 248, the exchange opened to traffic two months ahead of schedule on June 12, 2020. NCDOT awarded the contract for construction in early 2018, and the scheduled completion was extended to August 2020 due to heavy rains from Hurricane Florence.3
scenes
Union Cross Road (SR 2643) meets Interstate 74 at a diamond interchange along the Winston-Salem city line near Union Cross.
08/06/13
Interstate 74 west travel another 1.5 miles from Union Cross Road before their planned split, where I-74 will turn north onto the proposed Winston-Salem Beltway.
08/06/13
Traffic turns from Union Cross Road (SR 2643) south onto I-74 east for High Point.
08/06/13
NC 177 northbound at the diamond interchange with I-74/U.S. 74 south of Hamlet.
05/30/07
The westbound on-ramp to I-74/U.S. 74 west from NC 177. Interstate 74 ends five miles westward at U.S. 1 near East Rockingham. U.S. 74 continues to Wadesboro and Monroe.
05/30/07
Future Interstate 74, U.S. 74, and NC 177 shield assembly posted at Exit 316.
05/30/07
References:
- "Road to the future." Winston-Salem Journal, March 4, 2013.
- "Final Section of U.S. 311 Bypass Opens in Randolph County." North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), press release. June 7, 2013.
- "New Columbus County Interchange Opens on U.S. 74/76." North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), press release. June 12, 2020.
Photo Credits:
- AARoads: 08/06/13
- Andy Field: 05/30/07
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Page Updated Wednesday January 25, 2023.