Abandoned Interstate 85 Connector Ramps

Abandoned Interstate 85 Connector Ramps - Gastonia, NC

When Interstate 85 was extended westwards into Gaston County from Charlotte in 1962, it would come to a temporary end between New Hope and Cox Roads. Traffic at that time was funneled onto a connector highway that moved traffic onto Franklin Blvd. (US 29/74) When I-85 was completed through Gaston County in 1965, the connector ramps remained open to traffic. Nearby interchanges with Cox Road to the east and New Hope Road to the west were half diamond interchanges. (See map below)

1991 USGS Map Orientation: Interstate 85 is the top thick red line running from the top left corner to the right.
Franklin Blvd. (US 29/74) runs left to right in the center of the image.
The NC 279 New Hope Road exit is to the left of the connector and the Cox Road interchange is to the right.

In the early 1990s, NCDOT widened I-85 through Gastonia to six lanes. As part of this massive overhaul to the highway, the New Hope (Exit 20) and Cox Road (Exit 21) interchanges were reconstructed into full diamonds. The Gastonia Connector Interchange was eliminated. The former connector -- now Aberdeen Blvd. -- serves as an access road from Franklin Blvd. to Eastridge Mall and Cox Road. With the exception of the ramps on and off I-85, you can still travel the connector today. Motorists can still see remnants of the ramps right-of-way from Interstate 85 and the former connector.

All photos taken by Chris Curley - November 2005

Comments

What's In a Name?: When the Roads Really Do Tell a Story

Our tagline on the Gribblenation blog is "because every road tells a story". Some roads tell different stories than others. Along our travels, we may see historic markers that tell us a little story about the roads we travel or the places we pass by. Some historic markers are more general, as to telling us who lived where or what old trail traversed between two towns. During my travels across New York State and other states or provinces, I pass by many historic markers, some with interesting or amusing references to roads. I wanted to highlight a few of the markers I've seen along my travels around the Empire State and help tell their stories. Those stories may be as specific as explaining the tales of a tree that was used to help measure a distance of eight miles from Bath to Avoca in Steuben County, as referenced on the Eight Mile Tree historical marker above. They may also help point the way along historical roads first used centuries ago, or may help tell a local l...

2018 Mojave Road Trip Part 2; The deadly desert highway (California State Route 127 and Nevada State Route 373)

After leaving Barstow via Old Highway 58 my next destination was in Death Valley. To access Death Valley from rural San Bernardino County required a trek on north on Interstate 15 to California State Route 127 which becomes Nevada State Route 373 at the state line. Along I-15 I encountered the road sign oddity that is Zzyzx Road about eight miles south of Baker. Zzyzx Road is a four mile road that used to go to the Zzyzx Mineral Springs and Health Spa. The spa was founded in the 1940s and the owner made up the name "Zzyzx" to claim it was the last word in the English Language. The spa has been shut down since the 1970s and is now part of a Desert Studies Center for California State University. The southern terminus of CA 127 in Baker is located at I-15 exit 246. CA 127 is a 91 mile north/south highway which runs to the Nevada State Line in Inyo County. CA 127 is called Death Valley Road from I-15 northward. South of CA 127 ...

May 2023 Ontario Trip (Part 3 of 3)

Over the years, I have made plenty of trips to Ontario, crisscrossing the southern, central and eastern parts of the province. Living in Upstate New York, it's pretty easy to visit our neighbor to the north, or is that our neighbor to the west? Ottawa is one of my favorite cities to visit anywhere in the world, plus I've discovered the charm of Kingston, the waterfalls of Hamilton (which is on the same Niagara Escarpment that brings us Niagara Falls), the sheer beauty of the Bruce Peninsula, and more. But I hadn't explored much of Cottage Country. So I decided to change that, and what better time to go than over Memorial Day weekend, when the daylight is long and I have an extra day to explore. On the third and final day of my trip, I started in Huntsville and made my way through Muskoka District and Haliburton County, passing by many lakes along the way. I stopped in towns such as Dorset, Haliburton and Bancroft before making a beeline down to Belleville and then over th...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog