U.S. Route 401

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For former routes named U.S. Route 401, see U.S. Route 401 (1925) (planning stages only), U.S. Route 401 (1927), and U.S. Route 401 (1930s).

U.S. Route 401 is a spur of U.S. Route 1 located within the states of North Carolina and South Carolina. It is 264 miles (425 km) in length. It begins at Interstate 85 Exit 233 near the North Carolina-Virginia state line and ends in Sumter, South Carolina.

Prior to 2001, it ran 257 miles (414 km) from Norlina, North Carolina at U.S. Route 1 to Sumter, South Carolina at U.S. Route 76 Business. After 2001, the northern end of the highway was extended by duplexing with U.S. Route 1 to its current terminus. It goes through the cities of Raleigh, North Carolina, Fayetteville, North Carolina, and Sumter, South Carolina.

The route is the third highway to bear the name, which included renaming the stretch of U.S. Route 15A from Sumter to Raleigh, and former N.C. Highway 59 from Raleigh to Norlina.

The first U.S. 401 was assigned to a route from South Hill to South Boston in Virginia from 1926 to 1932. Parts of this route were renumbered as U.S. Route 58. The second U.S. 401 ran from Raleigh to Waterboro in North Carolina from 1933 to 1934. Parts of this route were replaced by U.S. Route 15.