North Carolina Highway 98
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| NC 98 |
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| Length: | 45 mi (72 km) | ||||||||
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| Formed: | 1936[1] | ||||||||
| East end: |    US 64 Alternate/NC 231 near Spring Hope, NC |
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| Major junctions: |
 US 401 near Youngsville; NC 96 near Youngsville; US 1 near Wake Forest; NC 50 near Durham; US 70 in Durham; NC 55 in Durham |
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| West end: |    US 15/US 501/US 70 Business in Durham, NC |
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| Counties: | Nash, Franklin, Wake, Durham | ||||||||
| Major cities: | Bunn, Wake Forest, Durham | ||||||||
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NC 98 is a 45-mile (72 km) North Carolina state highway and a semi-urban traffic artery connecting Durham to Wake Forest as well as many small-to-medium sized towns in the north portion of The Triangle region. A bypass is currently being constructed around Wake Forest to the south, which will soon make the old route passing through town become NC 98 Business.
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[edit] Route description
The eastern terminus of NC 98 begins at US 64 Alternate and the northern terminus of NC 231 just west of Spring Hope. The highway travels west to Bunn, where it merges with NC 39. NC 98 breaks off in the center of town and continues west to Wake Forest, crossing over US 401 and NC 96 on opposite sides of the Franklin/Wake County line.
The bypass and business routes split at Jones Dairy Road upon entering Wake Forest, with the bypass staying straight meeting with US 1A (South Main Street) a little ways up. Currently, the NC 98 Bypass ends at US 1 (Capital Boulevard) and follows the highway north to the original exit (now for NC 98 Business and NC 98 West). From there, NC 98 continues west towards Durham.
The highway will go under the US 70 Bypass on its way to downtown Durham and junction with US 70 Business (North Miami Boulevard). The two highways will run concurrent (Holloway Street), continuing west to cross over NC 55 and meet with US 15 Business/US 501 Business (North Roxboro Street) coming into downtown Durham. NC 98 terminates there as US 70 Business proceeds straight.
[edit] History
The original NC 98 from 1930 began at US 264 in Wilson and traveled southward to US 13 near Snow Hill, which is now a portion of NC 58. The current NC 98 was formed in 1936 and initially ran from US 1 in Wake Forest to US 64 near Spring Hope, superseding the older NC 561. It was rerouted northwest in 1940 to terminate at US 1 in Youngsville (originally NC 500) when US 264 was extended to Wake Forest over the old section. In 1952, NC 98 was changed back to passing through Wake Forest and extended west to its present terminus in Durham. The 1940 portion which went to Youngsville became part of NC 96.
[edit] Attractions along the way
- Durham Downtown District
- American Tobacco Company
- Carolina Theatre
- Falls Lake State Recreation Area
- Mountains-to-Sea Trail
- Wake Forest Historic District
- Wake Forest College Birthplace (see Wake Forest University)
- Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
- Unique Tomb (NC Senator William Andrew Jeffreys grave)
