Interstate 581

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Interstate 581

Length:

6.35 mi^[1] (10.22 km)

Formed:

late 1950s

South end:

US 220/SR 24 in Roanoke

North end:

I-81 near Hollins

Virginia Routes
< I-564		SR 598 >
Primary - Secondary - History

Interstate 581 (I-581) is a spur off of Interstate 81 into Roanoke, Virginia, United States, completely overlapping U.S. Route 220.

1 Description
2 Roy L. Webber Expressway
3 Exit list
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Description

The I-581 designation ends at the Elm Avenue (State Route 24) interchange in downtown Roanoke, Virginia, where US 220 continues south as the Roy L. Webber Expressway. I-581 was constructed as a six lane highway for its entire length and has not been widened in its history.

Most of I-581's exits are cloverleaf interchanges, which can cause weaving. The northern terminus has short merge areas with I-81, especially the left merge in the southbound direction. While traffic volumes can be high, especially near downtown Roanoke and Valley View Mall, bumper to bumper traffic is not common.^{[citation needed]}Roanoke Regional Airport, Valley View Mall, and the Roanoke Civic Center are all located adjacent to I-581. The Hershberger Road (State Route 101) exit has become a focus of development. In addition to Valley View, two large hotels were constructed in the early 1980s with another group of hotels being constructed from the mid 1990s through the present. In 2002, local CBS affiliate WDBJ constructed its new facility, designed to broadcast in HDTV, on Hershberger Road near I-581.

The southern end of I-581 offers views of the downtown Roanoke skyline, most prominently the Hotel Roanoke, the Wachovia Tower, the former Roanoke Shops of Norfolk Southern, the Norfolk Southern tower, and St. Andrews Catholic Church. The Mill Mountain Star is also clearly visible.

The road is planned to become part of an extension of Interstate 73 in Virginia.

[edit] Roy L. Webber Expressway

It has been suggested that this section be split into a new article entitled Roy L. Webber Expressway. (Discuss)

In 1980, the highway was extended approximately 3.3 miles from the Elm Avenue interchange to State Route 419 near Tanglewood Mall in Roanoke County. US 220 continues as a four lane arterial road south of the SR 419 interchange. Since the extension was not constructed to full interstate standards, it only carried the US 220 designation and was named the Roy L. Webber Expressway after a former mayor of Roanoke. The primary interchange along the expressway is at Wonju Street, which links Franklin Road (U.S. Route 220 Business) and Colonial Avenue and Brandon Avenue (U.S. Route 11). This exit provides quick access to downtown Roanoke from residential areas in southwest Roanoke. Wonju Street is named after Roanoke's sister city in South Korea. The expressway was originally constructed with four lanes but was widened to six lanes in the mid 1990s.

[edit] Exit list

Number	Destinations	Notes
	Begin Interstate 581 in Roanoke County
1	Interstate 81 - southbound to Bristol, northbound to Lexington	Exit 143 on I-81
2	State Route 117 - Peters Creek Road NW	Enter Roanoke City; access to Roanoke Regional Airport via State Route 118 - Airport Road
3	State Route 101 - Hershberger Road NW	Access to Valley View Boulevard NW to Valley View Mall and Aviation Drive/Roanoke Regional Airport
3C	Valley View Boulevard NW	Partial interchange: no access to I-581 northbound
4	U.S. Route 460/U.S. Route 11 Alternate/State Route 116/State Route 220 Alternate - Orange Avenue NE	Access to Roanoke Civic Center
5	/ U.S. Route 11/U.S. Route 221/State Route 116 (Williamson Road NE)	Partial interchange
6	State Route 24 - Elm Avenue SE
	End Interstate 581 in Roanoke; begin Roy L. Webber Expressway (U.S. Route 220)