North Carolina Highway 18

NC Highway 18
Route of NC 18 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NCDOT
Length:	145.5 mi[1] (234.2 km)
Existed:	1921 – present
Major junctions
South end:	SC 18 at the SC line near Earl
	US 74 / NC 226 in Shelby I‑40 in Morganton US 70 in Morganton US 64 in Morganton US 321 / NC 90 in Lenoir US 421 / NC 16 in Wilkesboro US 21 in Sparta
North end:	NC 89 near Lowgap
Location
Counties:	Cleveland, Lincoln, Catawba, Burke, Caldwell, Wilkes, Alleghany, Surry
Highway system
North Carolina Highway System Interstate U.S. State Scenic ← US 17 US 19 →

North Carolina Highway 18 (NC 18) is a 145-mile (233 km) North Carolina state highway that travels north–south through the Foothills and Mountain regions of the state.

Route description

A 1920s map of NC 18

Surry County

NC 18's northern terminus is at NC 89, just shy of the North Carolina/Virginia state line near the independent city of Galax, Virginia. From this point, NC 18 travels in a westerly direction (signed south) for approximately one-half mile before meeting the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Surry/Alleghany county line.

Alleghany County

From the Blue Ridge Parkway, NC 18 continues westerly to the town of Sparta. Traveling through the heart of the town, NC 18 crosses US 21, and then exits Sparta in a more southerly direction. Curving through the Blue Ridge Mountains, NC 18 meets the termini of NC 113 and NC 88 in the small community of Laurel Springs. Shortly after crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway again, NC 18 hugs the Ashe/Alleghany county line before entering Wilkes County.

Wilkes County

NC 18 curves around the mountainous terrain and continues south into Mulberry and then North Wilkesboro. NC 268 joins NC 18 (and later US 421 Business) through the town of North Wilkesboro, where both routes are also known at various points as Second Street, Main Street, and Wilkesboro Boulevard. After crossing the Yadkin River into Wilkesboro, NC 18 and NC 268 wind through the town's streets (Wilkesboro Avenue, East Main Street), splitting near the center of town; NC 18 continues south as South Cherry Street. Joining with NC 16 at a junction with the US 421 Bypass freeway, the routes exit the town to the south. Arriving in the community of Moravian Falls, NC 18 splits from NC 16 to the southwest. NC 18 hugs the Yadkin River and southern shores of the W. Kerr Scott Reservoir on its way to Lenoir in Caldwell County.

Caldwell County

Entering the city of Lenoir as Wilkesboro Boulevard, NC 18 joins US 64 through the heart of the city. The two routes cross US 321 (Hickory Boulevard), turn left onto Morganton Boulevard, cross US 321 Alternate (Norwood Street), and continue through downtown. US 64 and NC 18 stay joined after exiting Lenoir, through the town of Gamewell, and after exiting Caldwell County.

Burke County

Entering Burke County, US 64 and NC 18 bypass Rhodhiss Lake and enter into the city of Morganton. Shortly crossing the Catawba River, US 64 splits between a bypass route and a business route. NC 18 follows US 64 Business and Lenoir Road into downtown Morganton. After sharing Lenoir Street and Avery Avenue, both routes meet a terminus of NC 118, and then split between two one-way streets: Green Street and Sterling Street. In downtown, US 64 Business joins US 70 Business, while NC 18 continues southeasterly. After crossing a few railroad tracks, both streets join into a normal 2-lane road still known as Sterling Street. The state highway then meets US 70 and eventually arrives at an interchange with Interstate 40 (exit 105). Exiting Morganton, NC 18 travels through rural Burke County to the Catawba County line.

Catawba, Lincoln, and Cleveland counties

Shortly after entering Catawba County, NC 18 exits it, entering into Lincoln County. There, in the small community of Laurel Hill, NC 18 meets NC 10 and NC 27 before entering Cleveland County. Heading in a nearly due south direction, NC 18 travels through Belwood and Fallston, where it intersects with NC 182. Further south, the route meets the northern terminus of NC 180 before entering the city of Shelby. Routed along the city streets of Fallston Road, Grover Street, and Lafayette Street, NC 18 crosses US 74 Business and joins NC 150. After crossing US 74 Bypass/NC 226, both NC 150 and NC 18 exit the city to the south before splitting shortly after. NC 18 then heads due south, picking up NC 180 on its way to the South Carolina border, where both routes terminate; SC 18 begins at this terminus, near the town of Earl, North Carolina.

History

Major intersections

County	Location	mi	km	Destinations	Notes
Cleveland		0.0	0.0	SC 18 south (Shelby Highway) – Gaffney	South Carolina state line
	Patterson Springs	2.2	3.5	NC 180 north (Post Road) – Shelby	Southern terminus of NC 180
	Shelby	6.0	9.7	NC 150 west (College Avenue) – Boiling Springs	South end of NC 150 overlap
		8.0	12.9	US 74 / NC 226 (Dixon Boulevard) – Mooresboro, Polkville, Kings Mountain, Grover
		8.9	14.3	US 74 Bus. / NC 150 (Marion Street) – Lincolnton	North end of NC 150 overlap
		13.3	21.4	NC 180 south (Post Road) – Patterson Springs	Northern terminus of NC 180
	Fallston	19.4	31.2	NC 182 (Stage Coach Trail) – Polkville, Lincolnton
Lincoln	Toluca	27.2	43.8	NC 27 (Poe Road) – Lincolnton, Charlotte
	Laurel Hill	28.3	45.5	NC 10 south – Casar	South end of NC 10 overlap
		28.5	45.9	NC 10 north – Newton	North end of NC 10 overlap
Catawba	No major junctions
Burke	Morganton	45.8	73.7	I‑40 – Black Mountain, Hickory	I-40 Exit 105; Partial cloverleaf interchange
		47.7	76.8	US 70 (Fleming Drive) – Glen Alpine, Valdese
		48.3	77.7	US 64 west (Union Street) / US 70 Bus. west (Meeting Street) / NC 181 (Green Street) – Rutherfordton, Pineola	South end of very short overlap with Business US 70 on one-way pair; South end of US 64 overlap; Southern terminus of NC 181
		48.5	78.1	US 70 Bus. east (Union Street)	North end of Business US 70 overlap
Caldwell	Lenoir	61.5	99.0	NC 18 Bus. north (Harper Avenue)	Diamond interchange
		64.3	103.5	NC 18 Bus. south / NC 90 west (Harper Avenue) – Collettsville	South end of NC 90 overlap
		64.4	103.6	US 321 (Hickory Boulevard) – Hickory, Blowing Rock	Diamond interchange
		65.8	105.9	US 64 east / NC 90 east (Taylorsville Road) – Taylorsville, Statesville	North end of US 64 / NC 90 overlaps
Wilkes	Moravian Falls	88.7	142.7	NC 16 south – Taylorsville	South end of NC 16 overlap
	Wilkesboro	91.9	147.9	US 421 / NC 16 north (Watson Brame Expressway) – Yadkinville, Boone, Jefferson	North end of NC 16 overlap
		92.4	148.7	NC 268 west (Main Street) – Lenoir	South end of NC 268 overlap
	North Wilkesboro	94.0	151.3	US 421 Bus. north (6th Street)	South end of Business US 421 overlap
		94.9	152.7	US 421 Bus. south / NC 115 south – Statesville, Troutman	North end of Business US 421 overlap; Northern terminus of NC 115
		95.8	154.2	NC 268 east (Elkin Highway) – Ronda	North end of NC 268 overlap
Alleghany		115.4	185.7	Blue Ridge Parkway
	Laurel Springs	117.4	188.9	NC 88 west – Jefferson	Eastern terminus of NC 88
		118.3	190.4	NC 113 north – Scottville	Southern terminus of NC 113
	Sparta	129.9	209.1	US 21 (Main Street) – Elkin, Independence
Surry	Lowgap	144.7	232.9	Blue Ridge Parkway
		145.5	234.2	NC 89 (Pine Street) – Mount Airy, Galax
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Bannered routes

Shelby truck route

NC Highway 18 Truck
Location:	Shelby, North Carolina
Length:	3.9 mi[2] (6.3 km)

North Carolina Highway 18 Truck (NC 18 Truck) provides an alternative route for truck drivers that are passing through Shelby. Its routing, entirely on Dekalb Street, is both four-lane and provides a bypass from the downtown/county courthouse area. Signage along the route only appears at key intersections.

Morganton truck route

NC Highway 18 Truck
Location:	Morganton, North Carolina
Length:	5.0 mi[3] (8.0 km)

North Carolina Highway 18 Truck (NC 18 Truck) is a 5.0-mile (8.0 km) bypass west and north around downtown Morganton. It starts by going west along Fleming Drive (overlapping US 70) and then north along Sanford Drive (overlapping US 64), reconnecting with mainline NC 18 at Lenoir Road. Signage along the route only appears at key intersections.

Lenoir alternate route

North Carolina Highway 18 Alternate (NC 18A) was established around 1948-1948 as a renumbering of mainline NC 18, which was placed on a new bypass alignment south of downtown Lenoir. The route traversed along Harper Avenue entirely. In 1960, it was rebannered as NC 18 Bus.

Lenoir business loop

NC Highway 18 Business
Location:	Lenoir, North Carolina
Length:	2.9 mi[4] (4.7 km)
Existed:	1960–2012

North Carolina Highway 18 Business (NC 18 Bus) was established 1960 as a rebannering of mainline NC 18A, which traversed along Harper Avenue in downtown Lenoir. In 1968, westbound was rerouted along Mulberry and West Avenue; Sometime between 1969-1982, westbound was adjusted along Ridge Street onto West Avenue, eliminating Mulberry Avenue from the route. In 2006, a major realignment in downtown Lenoir took place, eliminating US 321A; at that time signage for NC 18 Bus was removed, but the route was not decommissioned. In December, 2012, NCDOT approved a change package that decommissioned the business loop and transferred control of the roads to the city of Lenoir.^[5]

See also

• North Carolina Bicycle Route 6 - concurrent with NC 18 in Laurel Hill and Morganton

References

External links

• Media related to North Carolina Highway 18 at Wikimedia Commons
• NCRoads.com: N.C. 18
• NCRoads.com: N.C. 18-A
• NCRoads.com: N.C. 18 Business