Gribblenation

I took a trip on Monday to see what progress, if any, had been made in some of the highway projects I am following starting in Durham then heading west on US 64 to Asheboro, northon US 220 to Greensboro then back east to Durham on I-40/85. 1. The Triangle Parkway Construction it appears has finally begun with the start of clearing of the toll road's right-of-way. The evidence is at the northern end and does not extend south to the Davis Drive (still under construction to make it a 4-lane highway) interchange on NC 540: View heading south on NC 147 just before it turns to end at Alexander Drive. Closer view of the area cleared and the construction equipment. Meanwhile, all was quiet at the other end of the construction corridor where the Parkway will meet NC 540 (mostly hidden y the grass under the ramp bridges). 2. The Future I-73 (US 220)/I-74 (US 311) Interchange: I drove northbound from Asheboro and took a few shots of progress in clearing the construction zone for the interchan...

Last week, Southbound PA Turnpike 43 from Brownsville to Uniontown was closed for the filming of a new movie, "The Next Three Days." The toll road was closed for nearly 24 hours from about 11 pm Sunday, October 4 th to about 11 pm Monday, October 5 th . The scene being shot featured Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks. The directors were looking for a highway with a toll booth - and the lightly traveled PA 43 in Fayette County was the perfect spot. There was also a chase scene filmed on the freeway. Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. who is producing the movie paid $25,000 to the PA Turnpike Commission to use the facility. The $25,000 covers a days worth of toll revenue, maintenance and safety costs, as well as police and emergency services. Story Link: Mon-Fayette Expressway closed for taping of Russell Crowe movie --- Greensburg Tribune-Review.

I was sent the above title link from a contact in the Myrtle Beach area. It was about information in a question and answer column that says there's been a revival of talks from local officials about bringing I-20 to Wilmington. Since SC has been against upgrading US 76, the new proposal would send I-20 north on I-95 to I-74 near Lumberton then east on an upgraded US 74, so SC wouldn't have to do anything but put up a few signs: "Transportation planners say connecting Atlanta with Wilmington with one interstate number (I-20) would create the perception that it's easy to travel between the two cities, even if no new roads are built. That could help the N.C. State Ports Authority - and perhaps other businesses in the region - by allowing it to market the fact that two interstates serve the Wilmington area. A great deal of ocean cargo to and from Atlanta goes to ports in Charleston, S.C., and Savannah, Ga., both of which have limited capacity. The idea would be to add the ...

Residents and tourists input is being sought in an online "willingness to pay" survey that the North Carolina Turnpike Authority will use to get credit to sell bonds to pay for construction of the bridge. The survey, which gives scenarios on time savings and what you would pay to cross the bridge to save time, is located at http://www.nustats.com/midcurrituck/ . With toll ranges from $6 to $30, the survey will help the NCTA make revenue projections. The survey is part of the Investment Grade Traffic and Revenue Study and should be complete by next spring. The survey takes no longer than five minutes. For more: How much should the bridge toll be? ---The Daily Advance

Decades ago, Pennsylvania had a unique way of marking towns and other geographical features on its highways. Cast iron signs which featured the town name and a historical anecdote about the town were found throughout the Commonwealth. Fortunately, many of these 'Keystone Town Markers' still exist today. Some though are not in the best of condition - and in some areas local civic groups are doing their best to restore them. One such group is the Pine Creek Preservation Association in Lycoming County. Recently, Jim Carn of the PCPA repainted and restored a handful of Keystones in the Pine Creek Valley. All photos were taken by Jim Carn (unless otherwise noted). Ramsey Run: Here's the original (from David Slauenwhite)- you can see that the 'Ramsey Run' was hand painted - most likely many years ago. Here is the 'restored sign' by Mr. Carn . Fresh colors and bold letters makes a big difference. Roaring Branch: Here's the original (from David Slauenw...

An Elon University poll of 422 Mecklenburg County adults on various Charlotte area issues show that close to 75% of Mecklenburg residents prefer the completion of Interstate 485 as the region's top transportation priority. 21% of those surveyed preferred the upgrading of Independence Blvd. 73% of respondents said the I-485 loop should be finished first. The survey was taken between September 16-20; and the margin of error is +/- 4.9 percent. On another hot Charlotte issue - the expansion of rail transit, 44.8% prefer the building of a commuter rail line paralleling Interstate 77 to Lake Norman first. The light-rail (Lynx) expansion to the northeast and UNC-Charlotte was the top rail priority of 36.5% of those polled. For more details on the poll: See the Elon University press release or the Charlotte Observer write up.

"On Monday, the Community Coalition of Little River organized a forum with local politicians to discuss the need to extend the Carolina Bays Parkway north to the state line. The highway currently ends at Route 9, and the fork in the road leads a lot of traffic through the Little River community. Little River residents like Delburt Wise say traffic in the downtown area can be unbearable at times because of the large number of people who get diverted there from Highway 31.... Mike Barbee with the South Carolina Department of Transportation says the department has already conducted a feasibility study in conjunction with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to determine how the extended highway would impact the environment and the people living in the community. Barbee says the long term goal would be to connect Highway 31 with the new Interstate 74, which is already partially funded by the NCDOT. However without any money available to fund the project now, the highway...