Interstate 73 in North Carolina
This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2023) |
Route information | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Maintained by NCDOT | ||||
Length | 101.1 mi[1][2] (162.7 km) | |||
Existed | 1997–present | |||
NHS | Entire route | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end | US 220 near Ellerbe | |||
North end | US 220 / NC 68 near Stokesdale | |||
Location | ||||
Country | United States | |||
State | North Carolina | |||
Counties | Richmond, Montgomery, Randolph, Guilford, Rockingham | |||
Highway system | ||||
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Interstate 73 (I-73) is a partially completed
Route description
As of 2024[update], I-73 begins south of Ellerbe, in concurrency with I-74 and U.S. Highway 220 (US 220), to north of Asheboro. I-73 and I-74 travel north through northern Richmond County and into eastern Montgomery County. In Montgomery County, the Interstates pass between the county's eastern border and the Uwharrie National Forest. The freeway enters Randolph County and passes just west of Asheboro. In Randleman, I-74 splits northwest toward High Point and Winston-Salem. North of the I-74 split, I-73 passes over Randleman Lake, a reservoir formed by the blocking of the Deep River and passes into Guilford County. Entering Greensboro, it ends its concurrency with US 220 as it goes northwest along the Greensboro Urban Loop with US 421 after a brief parallel with I-85. At its connection with I-40, US 421 continues north (or geographically west) with I-40 to Winston-Salem, while I-73 continues and I-840 begins. At the Bryan Boulevard exit, I-73 separates from I-840, the latter continuing northeast along the loop. Meanwhile, I-73 turns westward, passing Piedmont Triad International Airport and continuing until it crosses NC 68. The road then resumes its northward direction, stretching eight miles (13 km) before reconverging with US 220 near the Haw River.[3] It then proceeds four miles (6.4 km) further north along a newly widened stretch of US 220 to another interchange with NC 68 which was completed in December 2017 but not signed as I-73 until March 2018.[citation needed]
History
Authorized by the
In North Carolina, because several U.S. Highways were already planned for improvements in the central Piedmont region, I-73 was initially aligned to go through Rockingham, Asheboro, High Point, Winston-Salem, and Mount Airy.[6] The route through High Point was approved in May 1993.[7] However, in November 1993, an organization called Job Link, made up of business leaders from northern North Carolina and southern Virginia, wanted a major highway to connect Roanoke with the Greensboro area. It could be I-73, the group said, but did not have to be.[8] In April 1995, John Warner, who chaired the Senate subcommittee which would select the route of I-73, announced his support for the Job Link proposal. This distressed Winston-Salem officials who were counting on I-73, though Greensboro had never publicly sought the road. But an aide to US Senator Lauch Faircloth said the 1991 law authorizing I-73 required the road to go through Winston-Salem. Faircloth got around this requirement, though, by asking Warner to call the highway to Winston-Salem I-74.[9] In May, Warner announced plans to propose legislation that made the plan for two Interstates official.[10]
When I-73 crossed a border between two states, the federal law authorizing the road required that the two states agree that their sections meet. Originally, both Carolinas selected a route running south from Rockingham. However, North Carolina had more money to spend on roads,
In May 1997, the first section of I-73 was established, a 12.6-mile (20.3 km) section from south of Candor to Ulah. Signage of "Future Interstate 73" was also placed all along US 220, from Rockingham north to I-40 in Greensboro and south to Candor. On January 7, 2008, a 17-mile (27 km) extension south of Candor to Ellerbe was completed; however, because the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) had not applied to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to add the segment to the Interstate System, signage along the new stretch of freeway was listed as Future I-73, thus not an "official" addition to the Interstate at that time. Federal approval was granted in 2010 to make this part of the Interstate System at the conclusion of work to upgrade the highway in Asheboro. The route was given Interstate signage in mid-2013.[citation needed]
The next section to be completed and signed I-73 was the 7.5-mile (12.1 km) southwestern section of the Greensboro Urban Loop, in concurrency with I-40, in February 2008. The concurrency later changed to US 421 in September of same year (signage corrected by July 2009).[14][15][16]
The newest sections of I-73 to be completed are the eight-mile (13 km) stretch of US 220 freeway in Asheboro, the remaining parts of the US 220 freeway designated Future I-73 in 1997, and the six-mile (9.7 km) section from the Bryan Boulevard interchange northward back to US 220. The Asheboro section had several deficiencies that needed to be corrected before it could be designated an Interstate. Work started on this segment from
Construction began in April 2014 on I-73 from NC 68, near Piedmont Triad International Airport, to US 220 near the Haw River.[20] Seven miles of this section to US 220 in Summerfield opened May 19, 2017, while the remainder opened the evening of July 2, 2017. The latest segment of I-73 being completed was a four-mile (6.4 km) segment along a widened section of US 220 from near the Haw River north to its intersection with NC 68. Two contracts, one widening US 220, Project R-2413C, which started in May 2012, the other reconfiguring the NC 68 intersection into an interchange, started in September 2015, were completed in December 2017. The new NC 68 south interchange opened in May 2017. I-73 signs, including an "End I-73" sign beyond the NC 68 exit, were put up in March 2018.[citation needed]
Future
I-73 from the
The Western Rockingham Bypass, from the US 74/
The northernmost section, 18-mile (29 km) along US 220 from NC 68 north to the Virginia border, may be the last segment completed with NCDOT waiting to see whether Virginia is going to commit to constructing their section of I-73 south of Roanoke before commitments are made for funding. The only action taken along this segment was to replace the existing Future I-73 Corridor signs with Future I-73 signs in 2016.[citation needed] The extension of I-73 to the Virginia state line was listed in the NCDOT 2024-2033 State Transportation Improvement, although it is not fully funded.[28]
Exit list
County | Location | mi[2] | km | Old exit | New exit | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scotland | | I-73 south – Myrtle Beach | Future continuation into South Carolina[29][21] | ||||
Richmond | | Ghio Road | Future interchange (unfunded)[21][22] | ||||
| Future I-74 east / US 74 east – Laurinburg | Future interchange (unfunded) and future eastern end of I-74 overlap | |||||
| 319 | NC 38 – Bennettsville | Existing interchanges on US 74 (built to Interstate standards, not signed over lack of a connection to Interstate) | ||||
| 316 | NC 177 – Hamlet | |||||
Rockingham | 311 | 12 | US 1 to US 220 – Rockingham, Southern Pines, Cheraw | ||||
| 308 | 15 | Galestown Road – Cordova | ||||
| 306 | 16 | US 74 Bus. east – Wadesboro, Rockingham | Future interchange to be built as part of Rockingham Bypass project[24] | |||
| 20 | Cartledge Creek Road | |||||
| 22.4 | 36.0 | 22 | US 220 south – Rockingham | Partial interchange (rest of interchange under construction);[24] southern terminus of I-73; eastern end of I-74 overlap | ||
| 23.2 | 37.3 | 23 | Dockery Road / Haywood Cemetery Road | |||
| 24.9 | 40.1 | 8 | 25 | US 220 north – Ellerbe | ||
Ellerbe | 27.5 | 44.3 | 11 | 28 | To NC 73 west / Millstone Road | ||
| 29.9 | 48.1 | 13 | 30 | Haywood Parker Road | ||
| 33.1 | 53.3 | 16 | 33 | NC 73 – Windblow, Plainview | ||
Norman | 35.0 | 56.3 | 18 | 35 | Moore Street – Norman | ||
Montgomery | | 39.0 | 62.8 | 22 | 39 | Tabernacle Church Road | |
US 220 Alt. north – Candor | Southern end of US 220 overlap | ||||||
Candor | 44.0 | 70.8 | 44 | NC 211 – Candor, Pinehurst | |||
Biscoe | 49.0 | 78.9 | 49 | NC 24 / NC 27 – Biscoe, Carthage, Troy | |||
Star | 52.2 | 84.0 | 52 | Spies Road – Star, Robbins | |||
Randolph | | 58.0 | 93.3 | 41 | 58 | Black Ankle Road | |
Seagrove | 61.3 | 98.7 | 45 | 61 | NC 705 – Seagrove, Robbins | ||
| 65.4 | 105.3 | 49 | 66 | New Hope Church Road | To North Carolina Zoo | |
| 67.6 | 108.8 | 51 | 68 | US 220 Alt | ||
| 70 | US 64 – Siler City, Lexington | To North Carolina Zoo; Opened in December 2020;[30] Divided by Collector/distributor roadways | ||||
Asheboro | 71.3 | 114.7 | 71 | McDowell Road | |||
72.4 | 116.5 | 72 | To North Carolina Zoo; signed as exits 72A (north/east, Raleigh) and 72B (south/west, Lexington, Charlotte) | ||||
74.0 | 119.1 | 74 | NC 42 – Asheboro | Left exit; western terminus of NC 42 | |||
74.8 | 120.4 | 75 | Presnell Street | ||||
75.7 | 121.8 | 76 | To US 220 Bus. north / North Fayetteville Street / Vision Drive | ||||
77.1 | 124.1 | 77 | Spero Road | ||||
78.5 | 126.3 | 79 | Pineview Street | ||||
Randleman | 79.5 | 127.9 | 80 | I-74 west – High Point, Winston-Salem | Western end of I-74 overlap | ||
80.5 | 129.6 | 81 | Old US 311 – Randleman | Former southern terminus of US 311; US 311 still signed as of June 2023 | |||
82.2 | 132.3 | 82 | Academy Street – Randleman | ||||
US 220 Bus. south – Level Cross | To Richard Petty Museum | ||||||
Guilford | | 89.0 | 143.2 | 89 | NC 62 – Climax, High Point | ||
| 93.6 | 150.6 | 77 | 94 | Old Randleman Road | ||
Greensboro | 95.0 | 152.9 | 78A | 95A | I-85 north / US 421 to I-40 east – Durham/Raleigh | I-85 exit 122B | |
— | US 220 north | Northern end of US 220 and southern end of US 421 overlap; US 220 exit 95B | |||||
— | I-85 / US 421 south to I-40 east – Durham/Raleigh, Sanford | Southern end of US 421 overlap; US 421 exit 95; I-85 exit 121 | |||||
96.9 | 155.9 | 219 | 97A | US 29 north – Greensboro | Southbound exit and northbound entrance; US 29 exit 33B; former US 70 east | ||
97.0 | 156.1 | 218 | 97B | I-85 south / US 29 south – High Point, Charlotte | Southbound exits and northbound entrance; I-85 exit 120B; former US 70 west | ||
97C | Groometown Road to Grandover Parkway | Signed as exit 122A northbound; no access from US 421 northbound | |||||
100.2 | 161.3 | 100 | Gate City Boulevard – Greensboro, Jamestown, High Point | DDI[31] | |||
102.5 | 165.0 | 213 | 102 | Wendover Avenue – High Point | To Guilford College Road | ||
103.6 | 166.7 | 1 | 103 | I-40 / I-840 begin / US 421 north – Greensboro, Winston-Salem | Western end of I-840 and northern end of US 421 overlap; northbound exit left | ||
105.3 | 169.5 | 2 | 104 | West Friendly Avenue | |||
107.3 | 172.7 | 3 | 107 | I-840 east / Bryan Boulevard – Downtown Greensboro | Eastern end of I-840 overlap | ||
109.0 | 175.4 | 109 | Old Oak Ridge Road – PTI-GSO Airport | ||||
110.0 | 177.0 | 110 | NC 68 south – High Point | ||||
111.0 | 178.6 | 111 | NC 68 north – Oak Ridge | ||||
Summerfield | 116.8 | 188.0 | 117 | NC 150 – Summerfield, Oak Ridge | |||
119 | US 220 south – Summerfield, Greensboro | Southern end of US 220 overlap; northbound exit and southbound entrance | |||||
Stokesdale | 120 | US 158 – Stokesdale, Reidsville | |||||
Rockingham | | 122 | NC 65 – Stokesdale, Reidsville | ||||
| 123 | NC 68 south – Stokesdale | Current northern end of I-73; continuation as US 220; no access to NC 68 southbound / from NC 68 northbound | ||||
Existing interchanges on US 220 (upgrade to Interstate standards, unfunded)[32] | |||||||
Mayodan | US 311 north / NC 135 – Mayodan, Eden | ||||||
| US 220 Bus. south – Stoneville | ||||||
Stoneville | NC 770 – Stoneville, Eden | ||||||
I-73 north / US 220 north – Martinsville | Future continuation into Virginia | ||||||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
|
See also
- U.S. Roads portal
References
- ^ Adderly, Kevin (January 30, 2018). "Table 1: Main Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System Of Interstate and Defense Highways as of December 31, 2017". Route Log and Finder List. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
- ^ a b Google (October 26, 2013). "Interstate 73 in North Carolina" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved October 26, 2013.
- ^ "Portion of I-73 in Guilford County opening to drivers". News & Record. May 17, 2017. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ^ Natzke, Stefan; Neathery, Mike; Adderly, Kevin (June 18, 2012). "High Priority Corridors". National Highway System. Federal Highway Administration. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ^ Monk, John (April 11, 1995). "Despite S.C. Objections, N.C. Prepares I-73 Link". The State. Columbia, SC. p. B5.
- ^ Pope, Charles (May 11, 1995). "I-73 Rolls Through Angry Thurmond's Roadblocks". The State. Columbia, SC. p. B1.
- ^ Soraghan, Mike (June 17, 1995). "Carolinas Make a Deal on Routes of New Interstates". The State. Columbia, SC. p. B5.
- OCLC 11750106.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ISSN 0747-1858.
- ^ "I-73 Route Change (2012-07-11)" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. July 11, 2012. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
- ^ Division 8 (December 11, 2012). "TIP No. I-5329 (Contract DH00095) Upgrade signs to interstate standards along I-73/74 from I-85 in Guilford County to south of Ellerbe in Richmond County. Project Letting". North Carolina Department of Transportation.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Work on the Signing of I-73 between Greensboro and Ellerbe starts Monday". North Carolina Department of Transportation. February 20, 2013. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
- ^ North Carolina Department of Transportation. "Project #R-2413". Project Details. North Carolina Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ^ a b c South Carolina Department of Transportation. I-73 Northern Map (PDF) (Map). South Carolina Department of Transportation. Wallace inset. Retrieved October 24, 2012.
- ^ a b North Carolina Department of Transportation. "Project #I-4923". Project Details. North Carolina Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
- ^ Gross Domestic Product deflatorfigures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
- ^ a b c North Carolina Department of Transportation. "Project #R-3421". Project Details. North Carolina Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2012.
- ^ Stone, Gavin (January 9, 2019). "Bypass project accelerated: Bypass project around Rockingham accelerated from 2026 to 2020". Richmond County Daily Journal.
- ^ "NCDOT awards contract for Rockingham bypass". Richmond County Daily Journal. November 6, 2019.
- ^ Hussain, Ruksana (March 3, 2022). "NCDOT Constructing Interstate Bypass at Rockingham to Reduce Congestion". Construction equipment Guide. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
- ^ North Carolina Department of Transportation. "Current 2024-2033 STIP" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
- ^ "Interstate 73/74 Economic Atlas of North Carolina". www.ptrc.org. May 2011. pp. 11, 12. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
- ^ "US 64 Asheboro Bypass". Retrieved February 15, 2019.
- ^ "New I-73 interchange at Gate City Boulevard set to open this weekend". Winston-Salem, NC: WXII-TV. May 12, 2016. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
- ^ North Carolina Department of Transportation. "Project #W-5324". Project Details. North Carolina Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on October 29, 2011. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
External links
- Media related to Interstate 73 in North Carolina at Wikimedia Commons