U.S. Route 1 in North Carolina

U.S. Route 1
Route information
Maintained by NCDOT
Length: 174 mi[1][2] (280 km)
Existed: 1926 – present
Major junctions
South end: US 1 at the SC line near Rockingham
 

I-74 / US 74 in Rockingham
US 15 / US 501 in Aberdeen
US 421 in Sanford
US 64 in Apex
I-40 / I-440 in Raleigh
I-540 in Raleigh

I-85 / US 158 in Henderson
North end: US 1 at the VA line near Wise
Location
Counties: Richmond, Moore, Lee, Chatham, Wake, Franklin, Vance, Warren
Highway system

United States Numbered Highways
List • Bannered • Divided • Replaced

North Carolina Highway System

← NC 905 NC 2 →

U.S. Route 1 is an north–south United States highway that runs for 174 miles (280 km) from the South Carolina state line, near Rockingham, to the Virginia state line, near Wise. It serves as a strategic highway, connecting the North Carolina Sandhills and Research Triangle regions.[3]

Contents

Route description

From the South Carolina state line, US 1 passes through downtown Rockingham as a two-lane road with 5-lane boulevard segments before and after downtown. North of Rockingham continues as a two-lane road. Between NC 177 and the Moore County line, begins the multilaned highway where it is mostly a 5 lane rural highway with a continious center turn lane. Near the Moore County line becomes a 4 lane divided arterial. In southern Moore County, it continues as a 4 lane arterial with 5 lane boulevard segments in Pinebluff, Aberdeen and the southern part of Southern Pines. After the Saunders Boulevard traffic signal, US 1 becomes an Expressway grade bypass in Southern Pines. After North May Street, it becomes a brief 4 lane arterial before it becomes a 4 lane Expressway after Aiken Road. A mile south of the US 15/501` juncture, downgrades as a 4 lane arterial towards Tramway. After Tramway, it becomes a freeway bypassing Sanford and continues to Raleigh as a freeway, sharing briefly with US 64 at Apex and 11 miles (18 km) of the Raleigh Inner-Beltline with I-440. North of Raleigh, US 1 continues as an expressway through Wake Forest and Henderson. Exiting off the connector road before I-85, the highway reverts to a two-lane rural road, paralleling I-85 into Virginia. US 1 through North Carolina generally follows the fall line between the Piedmont and the Atlantic Coastal Plain.

Alternate names

Though the highway is commonly known as "Highway 1" or "U.S. 1" throughout the state, the highway does have other known names it uses locally in areas.

History

The general route of US 1 in North Carolina was first part of the Capital Highway, an auto trail organized in 1909 to encourage counties along the route to improve the road between Washington and Atlanta.[5] It differed from US 1 north of Norlina, where it ran via Emporia and Roanoke Rapids, and between Southern Pines and Rockingham, where a route via Pinehurst - where the association's president lived - was followed.[6] The Quebec-Miami International Highway, organized in 1911 and renamed the Atlantic Highway in 1915,[7] also followed this corridor, overlapping many parts of the Capital Highway.[8] It initially followed even less of US 1 than the Capital Highway, only taking the same route between Raleigh and Cameron and south of Rockingham,[9] but was modified to match the Capital Highway by 1920.[10][11]

In 1922, the route was designated as North Carolina Highway 50, from the South Carolina state line to Roanoke Rapids. In 1923, the route from Norlina to Roanoke Rapids was renumbered as NC 48; redirecting NC 50 north to Virginia and continuing on to South Hill as VA 122. In 1926, US 1 was established, it was assigned to overlap all of NC 50; it would be in 1934 when NC 50 was dropped from the route.[12]

Since its establishment, US 1 has not changed its route from the South Carolina state line to Pinebluff. The first change along the route happen in 1930 in Raleigh, where minor road changes were done in the downtown area. In 1933, US 1 was moved off Rocky Church Fork Road near Tramway onto new road to the west. Between 1937-1944, US 1 was rerouted in Aberdeen to its current routing and also north of Wise where US 1 moved onto new road east of Mac Powell Road. In 1948, US 1 was removed from most of Wake Forest Road, in Raleigh, and placed onto Louisburg Road; the old route became US 1A. In 1953, US 1 was placed on a bypass west of Wake Forest, leaving the old route to become US 1A.[12]

Around 1956-1957, several changes along US 1 were made: A new bypass build west of Sanford, old route replaced by US 1A (later US 1 Business). In Raleigh, US 1 was redirected onto one-way streets Dawson and McDowell that connected to a new road called Capital Boulevard, which connected US 1 back onto Louisburg Road; Person Street and Wake Forest Road became secondary roads ever since. Finally, a new Super-2 bypass was built east of Henderson; which would later become a full freeway between 1991-1993.[12]

In 1960, US 1 was placed on a Super-2, bypassing Moncure. Around 1963, US 1 was placed onto new freeway between Apex to North Boulevard (today an extension of Capital Boulevard), in north Raleigh. The old route to Hillsborough became Salem Road, while the routing through Raleigh becamse US 1 Business (1963-1975). Around 1965, the Super-2, from Moncure, extended north into Apex. In 1975, the Super-2, from Moncure, extended south to Sanford, connecting to its bypass. The entire route between Sanford to Apex became a freeway by the mid-1990s.[12]

In June, 2005, a new freeway bypass was built east of Vass and Cameron; the old route became US 1 Business.[12]

Future

The NCDOT has given US 1 importance as a "strategic corridor" from Interstate 85 in Henderson to the South Carolina state line as a "freeway". In the next 30 years, the DOT has the full intention to make it all a freeway on the existing alignment with some re-alignments.[13]

Lee County

Currently, the freeway ends at the southern end of the Sanford Bypass. From South Hawkins Street to about a mile south of the US 1 and US 15/501 split is a four lane arterial. From that point, it is classified as a "North Carolina Expressway" with full access control but allows left turns, U-Turns and right in's/right out's but no cross traffic. This section is posted at 60mph.

Moore County

From the Lee County line until just south of US 1 Business outside of Vass, before Aiken Road continues as a "North Carolina Expressway" with a 60mph speed limit. From Aiken Road to North May Street is a four lane arterial at 55mph. This is where some residents, the equestrian community and some business leaders[14] are opposing any kind of US 1 improvement from as far north as Aiken Road to the Pinebluff city limits. The NCDOT has two options with US 1; 1) build a eastern bypass avoiding the restaurant row of Southern Pines and Aberdeen where the bypass rejoins current US 1 between Aberdeen and Pinebluff. 2) Improve US 1 as a freeway from North May Street (and possibly north of it to US 1 Business) to the Broad Street split below Morganton Road. Then, the DOT would plan to build the center part of the busy 5-lane US 1 as a freeway to at least past US 15/501. To serve the existing businesses, frontage roads would be built but it's not clear whether the businesses will be relocated or taken away through eminent domain. Also, US 15/501 would also be "limited access" from US 1 to the traffic signal at Wal-Mart with frontage roads. South of the proposed north-south bypass and existing road improvements, NCDOT has not clearly defined US 1's future towards Pinebluff and to the Richmond County line. There is no Pinebluff bypass proposed at this time.[15]

Moore County Commissioners held a meeting on December 15th, 2011 for the future of US 1 in the county. They passed a resolution against the US 1 bypass. Furthermore, the Southern Pines town council voted 4-1 against any US 1 improvements. Southern Pines Town Council member Fred Walden was the only dissenter on the US 1 bypass. Despite the opposition, this does not affect the NCDOT's decision to continue with the project. [16]

Richmond County

As of December 2011, there has been no opposition for a proposed north-south Rockingham bypass. The widening project from the Moore County line to near NC 177 has been recently completed from a two-lane principal highway to mostly a 5 lane road with a small divided section near the Mackall Airfield. US 1 is now four lanes or greater from the US 1/I-85 interchange in Henderson, Vance County. Once US 1 enters South Carolina, there is no intention of widening US 1 to Cheraw and points south to Camden.

Junction list

County Location Mile[2] Exit Destinations Notes
Richmond Rockingham 9.5 I-74 / US 74 – Monroe, Laurinburg
11 US 220 north – Asheboro, Greensboro
12
US 74 Bus. (Broad Avenue) – Monroe, Hamlet
22 NC 177 south – Hamlet Rockingham Speedway at intersection
Hoffman 28 Little Road – Foxfire, West End
Moore Aberdeen 37.8 US 15 south / US 501 south / NC 211 east – Laurinburg, Raeford South end of US 15-501 overlap, east end of NC 211 overlap
38 NC 5 – Pinehurst
39.5 US 15 north / US 501 north / NC 211 west – Pinehurst North end of US 15-501 overlap, west end of NC 211 overlap
Southern Pines 40.5 Old U.S. Highway 1 – Southern Pines Business District
41 Morganton Road
42 Pennsylvania Avenue
43 NC 2 (Midland Road) – Sandhills Community College, Moore County Airport
Vass 49.5
US 1 Bus. north – Vass
50 NC 690 (Main Street) – Vass
Cameron 56 NC 24 / NC 27 – Cameron, Lillington, Fayetteville
Lee 59
US 1 Bus. south – Cameron		 Superstreet intersection
62 US 15 south / US 501 south – Carthage, Pinehurst South end of US 15-501 overlap
Tramway 64.5 NC 78 east (Tramway Road) – Cameron
Sanford 67
US 1 Bus. north / NC 42 – Asheboro, Fuquay-Varina
68 Spring Lane
69 69A US 421 / NC 87 south – Dunn, Greensboro South end of NC 87 overlap
69.5 69B Burns Drive
70 70 Oscar Keller Jr Highway – Fuquay-Varina Future US 421
71 71
US 15 north / US 501 north / US 1 Bus. south – Pittsboro		 North end of US 15-501 overlap
74 74 Colon Road
76 76 Farrell Road
78 78 Deep River Road
Chatham Moncure 79 79 Moncure-Pittsboro Road – Moncure, Pittsboro
81 81 Pea Ridge Road – Jordan Lake
Merry Oaks 84 84 Old U.S. Highway 1
Wake New Hill 89 89 New Hill-Holleman Road – New Hill, Jordan Lake
NC 540 Western Wake Freeway – Under Construction (Projected: 2012)[17]
Apex 95 95 NC 55 (Williams Street) – Apex, Holly Springs, Fuquay-Varina
96 96 Ten Ten Road
Cary 98 98 US 64 west / Tryon Road – Pittsboro, Asheboro Signed as exits 98A (Tryon Road) and 98B (US 64); west end of US 64 overlap
99 99 Cary Parkway
101 101 Walnut Street, Buck Jones Road, Crossroads Boulevard Signed as exits 101A (Walnut Street) and 101B (Buck Jones Road, Crossroads Boulevard) westbound
102 I-40 / US 64 east – RDU Airport, Durham, Benson, Rocky Mount West end of I-440 overlap, east end of US 64 overlap
Raleigh US 1 overlaps with Interstate 440 (exits 1 to 11).
113 I-440 east / US 401 south (Capital Boulevard) – Rocky Mount, Raleigh Downtown East end of I-440 overlap, south end of US 401 overlap
116 US 401 north (Louisburg Road) – Louisburg North end of US 401 overlap, northbound exit and southbound entrance
118 I-540 (Northern Wake Expressway) – Louisburg, Durham
Wake Forest 124 US 1A north (Main Street) / New Falls of the Neuse Road – Wake Forest
125 NC 98 – Durham, Wake Forest
126
NC 98 Bus. – Durham, Wake Forest Downtown
Franklin Youngsville 131 NC 96 – Youngsville, Oxford
132 US 1A south – Youngsville
134 US 1A north (Main Street) – Franklinton
Franklinton 135 NC 56 (Green Street) – Franklinton, Creedmoor
137 US 1A south (Main Street) – Franklinton
Vance 146
US 1 Bus. north (Raleigh Road)
148
US 1 Bus. (Raleigh Road) – Henderson		 Northbound exit and southbound entrance
149 Bearpond Road
Henderson 150 Vanco Mill Road
152 NC 39 (Andrews Avenue) – Henderson
154 Warrenton Road
156
I-85 north / US 158 west / US 1 Bus. south (Garnett Street) – Henderson, Petersburg		 West end of US 158 overlap
Middleburg 158 I-85 / Flemingtown Road – Henderson, Durham, Petersburg
Warren Norlina 167 US 158 east / US 401 south – Warrenton East end of 158 overlap, south end of US 401 overlap
174 I-85 – Henderson, Petersburg North end of US 401 overlap
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
     Concurrency terminus •      Closed/Former •      Incomplete access •      Unopened

Photo gallery

See also

References

  1. ^ American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, United States Numbered Highways, 1989 Edition
  2. ^ a b Google, Inc. Google Maps – US 1 (Map). Cartography by Google, Inc. http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=US-1+N&daddr=36.15056,-78.45208+to:36.375593,-78.349512+to:36.43876,-78.22443+to:US-1+N&hl=en&geocode=FewXEwIdEvw8-w%3BFSCdJwIdkOpS-yndRJi5krGtiTEmFSzxL6tXaA%3BFSkMKwIdOHtU-ynVugt5Jb6tiTGn7HjzgRDZ7A%3BFegCLAId0mNW-ynRHr3BlOutiTEQSVOubNDzJw%3BFXeeLQIdIc5W-w&mra=dme&mrsp=4&sz=15&via=1,2,3&sll=36.53895,-78.182831&sspn=0.025688,0.055747&ie=UTF8&ll=35.465144,-78.601685&spn=3.314921,7.13562&z=8. Retrieved 2011-03-04. 
  3. ^ "NCDOT: Strategic Highway Corridors". http://www.ncdot.org/doh/preconstruct/tpb/SHC/. Retrieved 2011-03-04. 
  4. ^ a b c "North Carolina Memorial Highways and other Named Facilities". http://www.ncdot.org/doh/preconstruct/traffic/TEPPL/Topics/N-01/Sorted%20by%20County.pdf. Retrieved 2011-03-03. 
  5. ^ The Washington Post, Push Capital Highway, September 1, 1909
  6. ^ American Association for Highway Improvement, The Official Good Roads Year Book of the United States, 1912, p. 342
  7. ^ William Kaszynski, The American Highway: The History and Culture of Roads in the United States, 2000, p. 38
  8. ^ American Highway Association, Good Roads Year Book, 1917, p. 491
  9. ^ American Automobile Association, General Map of Transcontinental Trails with Principal Connections, 1918
  10. ^ Rand McNally, New Official Railroad Map of the United States and Southern Canada, 1920
  11. ^ Automobile Club of America and National Highways Association, United States Touring Map, 1924
  12. ^ a b c d e "NCRoads.com: U.S. 1". http://www.members.cox.net/ncroads/us001.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04. 
  13. ^ http://www.ncdot.org/doh/preconstruct/tpb/shc/
  14. ^ http://www.nobypass.com/
  15. ^ http://www.ncdot.gov/projects/moorechoices/
  16. ^ http://www.thepilot.com/news/2011/dec/16/walden-clarifies-stance-horse-country-bypass/
  17. ^ "NCTA: Western Wake Freeway". http://ncturnpike.org/projects/Western_Wake/. Retrieved 2011-01-29. 
U.S. Route 1
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