And take away Raleigh’s only primary interstate?
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Of course not! Just redesignate it as I-46 or something
Orange - re routed I-40
Olive - I-46 designation
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Charlotte is 3 hrs 20 minutes (199 miles) from Port of Wilmington.
Charlotte is 3 hrs 20 minutes (210 miles) from Port of Charleston.
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That would still be bad for the region’s marketing. People know about I-40 as one of the few cross country interstates meanwhile: “Easy access to I-46” “Where?”
Not trying to be rude, but that’s a terrible idea.
Does that really matter anymore though? It’s not like we’re a sleepy town anymore. We still have I-95 and I-85 at a stones throw. I don’t think we’d really lose much marketing wise because how many people are really driving from Wilmington to the West Coast. It’d also help get some through freight off our area. If the region really cares about marketing, then we need to advertise how close we are to I-95. Driving I-95 you’d have no clue how close you are to Raleigh. You could also just make the new ILM CHA connection I-36 or I-38
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73/74 is going to cover a lot of this mileage. My understanding is that east of Charlotte is a nightmare, and trying to build a freeway will be a real struggle. They certainly need a better connection east, and to the West. To the mountains its up either out 77 to 421 or 85 to 321. Whatever we do, I don’t think we need to rename the freeway.
Agreed, which is why groups like RTA focused on getting US-64 signed to I-495 (now I-87)
I like those. Too many headaches with renaming I-40 (plus issues with I-540, I-440) This road will also be (eventually) cosigned with I-74 for a third of the CLT - ILM route (Rockingham to Wilmington)
In both cases, the interstate standards make it easier to market/attract new businesses. Hopefully gives opportunity for smart growth, too
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I will just riff a little - what the entire Southeast needs is a great Atlanta By-pass connecting August to Columbus, the back north to Huntsville. We all need a way to move through the region with out having to go through Atlanta.
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I-14 is coming! Funded with the new law
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I’ll add to that with the East Coast needs a way to go north/south without having to go anywhere near DC. I’ve driven up north several times over the past 5 +/- years and my biggest issues are always near DC. Only got stuck in NYC and Philly once each, get stuck in DC nearly every single trip.
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I mean it’s not just Wilmington. The Triad is probably the best positioned metro in the state with highway access. Charlotte deserves better access to Fayetteville, ENC, coast, etc. If planning decades out, that would be where I’d be looking.
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Ah yes, I forgot about this one. That will be, I believe, be a big help with traffic and, hopefully, the economy of some of the poorest counties in the region. Certainly in Alabama, it will run right through our poorest and most economically distressed counties. Thanks for the reminder @atl_transplant !!
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It’s going to require a lot of Bypasses. The biggest one they’ve already got constructed though with the Monroe Bypass.
I did the Charlotte to Rockingham drive last week and it was a Pain and a half. I can’t imagine what it was like before Monroe Bypass.
If I was in charge, this is what my NC Limited Access Freeway grid would look like. I had plans to write it up but for now here it is in rough map form.
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I’ve played around with this. I have it mapped out somewhere. The big hurdle is convincing the Southern tip of New Jersey to sign on to having a bridge
Cape May? Yeah that’d be a bear. Lot of very wealthy people with nice vacation homes down there
Yup. The route is pretty much in place other than crossing the Delaware Bay. It’d do wonders for East Coast freight and trip movement though. Hell, maybe it could even awaken Atlantic City from the dead.
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I particularly like the road from Columbia up to Raleigh. That would take a lot of the traffic off 20/95 on my way to the beach, and would provide a nice alternative from Atlanta to Raleigh.
My exact thoughts.
At the heart of a lot of these is connecting these cities (Raleigh to Charlotte / Raleigh to ATL) better and alleviating the 5s and 0s Interstates. But more importantly, connecting and driving development of these Industrial hubs even more. NC can really cement their place as an industrial leader if we continue on this path.
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I-81 is the alternate East Coast route that avoids metro traffic. There’s tremendous demand for logistics facilities in that corridor, affecting everywhere from Atlanta and the Triad up through Allentown PA.
This is essentially a third beltway around Raleigh, with 440 and 540 being the first and second. (But, as mentioned, it already largely exists as highway.)
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I-81 is great if you’re coming from points West but let’s face it, most of the N-S Traffic is to / from Florida where 95 is the only go.
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