Death Valley (North Carolina)
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"Death Valley" in North Carolina is a nickname for a stretch of 6-lane freeway in Greensboro multiplexed with six routes: Business I-85, Interstate 40, U.S. Highway 29, U.S. Highway 70, U.S. Highway 220, and U.S. Highway 421. This 2.5 mile corridor, which also bears the name Preddy Boulevard, begins in the west at the Interstate 40/Interstate 85 (now Business I-85)/Randleman Road interchange and ends in the east at the U.S. Highway 29/70/220/421/Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard junction. Both of these interchanges are quite unusual in design and are often operating at above full capacity, leading to frequent traffic jams and traffic incidents.
One major problem with the highway is U.S. Route 29/220/70 southbound merges from the right, and exits to the left. Thus, through traffic on I-40 and US 29 (a major route from Virginia to Charlotte) must all merge to the other side of the freeway.
Conditions at Death Valley, however, have improved since the 2004 completion of the Greensboro Bypass (Urban Loop); I-85 was rerouted along this bypass loop, easing traffic through the dangerous stretch. Once the southern segment of the Greensboro Urban Loop is complete, Interstate 40 will be rerouted to the south and the old route through Death Valley will become Business I-40, further reducing the amount of thru traffic.
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[edit] History
The nickname "Death Valley" was originally given to the 2.5 mile segment of I-85 in Greensboro in 1963 after seven people died in accidents there the previous year. In 1964, the state unveiled a plan to eliminate Death Valley's flaws. After numerous construction projects, conditions improved along the corridor, but the nickname remained. Over the years, increased traffic through the area has given the nickname "Death Valley" new meaning. The nickname is well known by locals, news reporters, and frequent travelers, similar to Malfunction Junction in Knoxville, Tennessee.
[edit] Trivia
- Death Valley currently holds the record for the most concurrent federal routes on a strech of road in the United States.
- US 421 is a wrong-way concurrency with Business I-85, US 29, and US 220.
