Skip to main content

Interstate 495 to be signed in North Carolina sometime soon

NCDOT officially announced today that US 64 between Interstate 440 in Raleigh and Interstate 95 in Rocky Mount has been approved by the FHWA to be signed as Interstate 495.

The section of US 64 between I-440 (Exit 419) and I-540 (Exit 423) will be signed as Interstate 495.  The remainder of US 64 (and US 264 until Zebulon) from Exit 423 to I-95 (Exit 464) will be signed as Future I-495.


No word currently on when either style of the I-495 signs will be posted along US 64.  Nor is there specific plans on when projects to upgrade the US 64 freeway from Rolesville Road (Exit 430) to I-95 will occur.

Improvements to inside and outside shoulders on the route east of Exit 430 along with upgrades to the Nashville bypass will be necessary for the full Interstate designation to be signed along the rest of the route.  NCDOT has unfunded plans to widen the US 64/264 freeway from Rolesville Road to the US 264 East split (Exit 436) to six lanes.  It is possible that the Interstate designation could speed that project up.

I travel the Interstate 495 corridor to work daily - as does co-blogger Brian LeBlanc - so when the route is signed one of us will be sure to post it here.

H/T: Ben Thurkill
I-495 shield courtesy of Shields Up!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...

Bleriot Ferry - Alberta

  Alberta operates six ferries scattered throughout the province. Roughly twenty to twenty-five kilometers up the Red Deer River from the town of Drumheller is one of the most scenic ferry crossings in all of Wild Rose Country, the Bleriot Ferry. Using the North Dinosaur Trail (Alberta Highway 838, or AB 838), the Bleriot Ferry provides a scenic river cruise of sorts in the Canadian Badlands. The Bleriot Ferry started operating in 1913 as the Munson Ferry when a few bridges crossed the Red Deer River. The ferry was started by Andre Bleriot, the brother of famed early aviator Louis Bleriot, who became famous for being the first person to fly over the English Channel. At the time, the Alberta provincial government commissioned local residents to run the ferries. There were several ferries along the Red Deer River, and not only did they serve as vital transportation links, but they also served as local social hubs, since everyone had to take the ferries to go places. Over time, as the...

I-73/I-74 and NC Future Interstates Year in Review 2024

Welcome to another annual review of progress in constructing North Carolina's New and Future Interstate routes. While 2024 was not too exciting, with no new segments of major routes opening, there was 1 new interstate signing, another proposed new interstate route, and the near opening of a new segment for 2 routes. As tradition, I will start off with a review of what happened with I-73 and I-74 and then move on to the major news of the year about the other new and future routes. Work continued on the I-73/I-74 Rockingham Bypass through the year. The last few months have been hoping for news of its opening before 2025, without luck. Signs of its near completion included the placement of new signs, many with interstate shields uncovered, along the Bypass and intersecting roadways. For example, these went up along US 74 East: Overhead signage at Business 74 exit which contains the future ramp to I-73 North/I-74 West. Signage was also updated heading west on US 74 approaching the unop...