- This is a network of Projects comprised of 1)
improvements to U.S. 70 (future I-42) and 2) improvements to I-95. Each has
independent utility, but the greatest benefits are realized when the two
investments are jointly made.
- The I-95 part of the Project will increase
safety, bring key portions of the facility into a state of good repair and up
to current design standards, add capacity and increase the flow of traffic on
this national artery in North Carolina, ensuring connections between the
Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, military installations and international
ports on the eastern seaboard are maintained and enhanced.
- The U.S. 70 (future I-42) portion of the Project
completes the last two remaining gaps between I-40 and the eastern terminus of
the Havelock Bypass to bring the entire stretch of road up to freeway
standards. This will be the culmination of a decades-long effort to develop
this facility to serve Eastern North Carolina. U.S. 70 serves as an evacuation
route during severe storms.
Specific I-95 improvements are
comprised of widening, interchange improvements and IT enhancements as follows:
Widening two sections:
- Widen I-95 to eight lanes from I-95 Business
(Exit 56) to SR 1002 (Long Branch Road – Exit 71).
- Widen I-95 to eight lanes from US 301 (Exit 22)
to I-95 Business (Exit 40)
- Interchange improvements at:
- SR
1811 (Bud Hawkins Road – Exit 70)
- SR
1001 (Long Branch Road – Exit 71)
- SR
1793 (Pope Road – Exit 72)
- US
421 (Exit 73)
- SR
1808 (Jonesboro Road – Exit 75)
- SR
1709 (Hodges Chapel Road – Exit 77)
- IT enhancements that include:
- Installation
of fiber optic trunk line and microcell towers along the full 181-mile length
of I-95 from the South Carolina border to the Virginia border.
- Message
signs with real-time information on driving conditions (time to port, flooding,
accident ahead)
- Support
for connected/autonomous vehicle technology including Phase 1 technologies that
are moving into new vehicles (2018 to 2020).
- Fiber
offers opportunities for schools, police, emergency response, economic
development and NCDOT revenue opportunities.
Specific U.S. 70 improvements
are comprised of upgrades of two highway segments to freeway standard and IT
enhancements as follows:
Upgrade the U.S. 70 (Future I-42) corridor from I-40 to
eastern terminus of the Havelock Bypass (STIP Project R-1015) to freeway in two
places:
- U.S. 70 from U.S. 70 Bypass East of Selma to
Pondfield Road (STIP Project R-5829)
- U.S. 70 from the proposed West Thurman Road/East
Thurman Road Interchange (STIP Project R-5777B) to the Havelock Bypass (STIP
Project R-1015)
- IT enhancements that include the same features
as described for I-95 above.
Why Improve I-95 and U.S. 70
Together? The ITS features included in
the Project would facilitate detours when severe crashes close I-95 for hours
at a time. The communications coverage provided with US70 and I-95 could easily
be extended to include the southern portion of US 117 between I-40 and U.S. 70.
Collectively, by wiring this “triangle” near the center of I-95 as it traverses
the state, NCDOT has redundant capability and the ability to manage that
capacity in real time using the IT enhancements as it responds to crash and
natural hazard events.
