Interstate 240
Interstate 240 is a 9.54 mile long urban loop joining I-40 north with Downtown Asheville. I-26 overlaps with I-240 east from I-40 to West Asheville and the Captain Jeff Brown Bridge spanning the French Broad River. U.S. 19/23/74A overlap with I-240 between Patton Avenue and Future I-26 north from Downtown. U.S. 70/74A follow I-240 east from Future I-26 to Carolina Street.
Interstate 240 North Carolina Guides
The oldest section of I-240 was built in 1961 as a new alignment for U.S. 70 to the north of Downtown. This portion ran east from Patton Avenue to NC 694 (Town Mountain Road). Work later completed the freeway between I-40 and Patton Avenue on the west side of Asheville in 1969 as a new alignment for NC 191. The easternmost section of I-240, from NC 694 to I-40 and U.S. 74-A, was completed in 1980.1
Extension of Interstate 26 from I-40 in southwest Asheville to I-81 in the Tri-Cities region of Tennessee created an overlap with I-240 in 2003. Started in 2021, work on the I-26 Connector shifts I-26/240 to a new alignment. Subsequent construction will modernize the substandard section of I-26/240 southwest from Patton Avenue (U.S. 19-23-74A).
scenes
NC 191 (Brevard Road) south at the entrance ramp to I-240 east / I-26 west. Brevard Road continues south to a folded diamond interchange (Exit 47) with Interstate 40 nearby.
07/16/05
U.S. 19/23 trailblazers direct motorists onto I-240 east / I-26 west to Downtown Asheville. U.S. 19/23 Business join the freeway at Exit 2. They are followed by the U.S. 19/23 mainline at Exit 3, with all four routes spanning the French Broad River alongside U.S. 74A into central Asheville.
07/16/05
Patton Avenue heads west from Downtown Asheville into the directional T interchange joining I-240 and Future I-26.
05/26/21
Patton Avenue ties into I-240 west and I-26 east via a left side entrance ramp ahead of the Captain Jeff Brown Bridge across the French Broad River.
05/26/21
Haywood Street west at the eastbound entrance ramp for Interstate 240 outside Downtown Asheville.
05/26/21
Interstate 240 and U.S. 70 shield assembly posted within the three-level interchange at Tunnel Road. This state-named shield was eventually replaced.
08/01/01
The eastbound c/d roadway from Tunnel Road at the intersecting ramps with I-240 and U.S. 70 at Exit 7.
07/16/05
The westbound c/d roadway from I-240 to U.S. 70 (Tunnel Road) ties into the entrance ramp from U.S. 70 west at a T-intersection.
12/31/13
05/26/21
U.S. 19 continues 10.78 miles northeast to Cane River and the separation into U.S. 19E/W.
05/26/21
References:
Photo Credits:
- Alex Nitzman: 07/16/05
- Brent Ivy: 05/26/21
- Carter Buchanan: 08/01/01
- Alex Nitzman, Carter Buchanan: 12/31/13
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Page Updated Friday January 27, 2023.