Interstate 20 (I‑20) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the Southern United States. I-20 runs 1,539 miles (2,477 km) beginning at an interchange with I-10 in Scroggins Draw, Texas, and ending at an interchange with I-95 in Florence, South Carolina. Between Texas and South Carolina, I-20 runs through northern Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The major cities that I-20 connects to include Dallas, Texas; Shreveport, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi; Birmingham, Alabama; Atlanta, Georgia; and Columbia, South Carolina.
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of 2,556.61 miles (4,114.46 km), it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to east, it passes through California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Its western end is at I-15 in Barstow, California, while its eastern end is at a concurrency of U.S. Route 117 (US 117) and North Carolina Highway 132 (NC 132) in Wilmington, North Carolina. Major cities served by the interstate include Flagstaff, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Amarillo, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Little Rock, Arkansas; Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville in Tennessee; and Asheville, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Durham, Raleigh, and Wilmington in North Carolina.
Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with I-95 in Petersburg, Virginia, near Richmond. It is nominally north–south as it carries an odd number, but it is physically oriented northeast–southwest and covers a larger east-west span than north-south. While most Interstates that end in a "5" are cross-country, I-85 is primarily a regional route serving five southeastern states: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. Major metropolitan areas served by I-85 include the Greater Richmond Region in Virginia, the Research Triangle, Piedmont Triad, and Charlotte metropolitan area regions of North Carolina, Upstate South Carolina, the Atlanta metropolitan area in Georgia, and the Montgomery metropolitan area in Alabama. There are plans to extend I-85 along the US Route 80 (US 80) corridor into Mississippi. Because of its unusually diagonal nature, portions of I-85 are to the west of I-75, which puts I-85 out of the Interstate grid.
The Research Triangle, or simply The Triangle, are both common nicknames for a metropolitan area in the Piedmont region of North Carolina in the United States, anchored by the cities of Raleigh and Durham and the town of Chapel Hill, home to three major research universities: North Carolina State University, Duke University, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, respectively. The nine-county region, officially named the Raleigh–Durham–Cary combined statistical area (CSA), comprises the Raleigh–Cary and Durham–Chapel Hill Metropolitan Statistical Areas and the Henderson Micropolitan Statistical Area. The "Triangle" name originated in the 1950s with the creation of Research Triangle Park, located between the three anchor cities and home to numerous high tech companies.
U.S. Route 15 is a 791.71 mi (1,274.13 km)-long United States highway, designated along South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York. The route is signed north–south, from U.S. Route 17 Alternate in Walterboro, South Carolina to NY 17 in Corning, New York.
U.S. Route 501 is a spur of U.S. Route 1. It runs 355 miles (571 km) from Buena Vista, Virginia at U.S. Route 60 to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina at U.S. Route 17 Business. It passes through the states of Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. From Durham to Laurinburg, a 108-mile (174 km) section of US 501 overlaps U.S. Route 15. Sections of US 15-501 also share routings with U.S. Route 1 in sections near Sanford, North Carolina and Aberdeen, North Carolina.
U.S. Route 264 (US 264) is an east–west United States Highway located completely within the U.S. state of North Carolina, running for 215.7 miles (347.1 km). Its western terminus is located at Interstate 87 (I-87), I-440, and US 64 in Raleigh. US 264 is a freeway between Raleigh and Wilson, with segments running concurrently with I-87, I-587, I-795, and US 64. The highway is largely parallel to I-587 between Wilson and Greenville and primarily serves smaller communities such as Saratoga and Farmville. East of Greenville, US 264 is an important highway connecting communities such as Washington, Belhaven, Swan Quarter, and Engelhard. The eastern terminus of US 264 is located at US 64 in Manns Harbor.
Interstate 540 (I-540) and North Carolina Highway 540 (NC 540) are part of a partially completed beltway around the city of Raleigh in the US state of North Carolina, forming the Raleigh Outer Loop. When complete, the route will completely encircle the city, meeting its parent route of I-40 in two locations.
Interstate 440 (I-440), also known as the Raleigh Beltline, the Cliff Benson Beltline, or locally as The Beltline, is an Interstate Highway in the US state of North Carolina. I-440 is a 16.4-mile-long (26.4 km) partial beltway that nearly encircles central Raleigh. I-440 begins in west Raleigh at an interchange with I-40 as a continuation of U.S. Highway 64 (US 64)/US 1 and traverses a primarily residential area in west Raleigh. The freeway makes a turn toward the east, crossing US 70, Six Forks Road, and Wake Forest Road. US 1 branches north off I-440 at US 401, becoming US 401/US 1. I-440 turns toward the southeast and follows a brief concurrency with U.S. Highway 64 Business before intersecting I-87/US 64/US 264. US 64 and I-87 are concurrent with I-440 along the remainder of the road's southwesterly routing. Exit 16 is the last exit on I-440, where I-440 splits to join either I-40 eastbound and westbound.
North Carolina Highway 54 (NC 54) is a 55.0-mile-long (88.5 km) primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The highway serves the Research Triangle area, between Burlington and Raleigh, connecting the cities and towns of Chapel Hill, Durham, Morrisville and Cary. The highway also links the campuses of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University.
North Carolina Highway 55 (NC 55) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It serves as a traffic artery connecting Durham with Cary and numerous small cities and towns in The Triangle on its way toward the Pamlico Sound. A portion of NC 55 extends through Research Triangle Park. NC 55 is a major artery in the central part of The Triangle region, and is a four lane, divided highway between Durham and Cary and Apex. NC 55 is also a divided highway between Apex and Fuquay-Varina.
North Carolina Highway 147 (NC 147) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The highway is an 8.1-mile-long (13.0 km) freeway through Durham running roughly southeast to northwest; the entire route lies within the city limits. To the southeast, it connects the city to the Research Triangle Park. NC 147 is the northern half of the Durham Freeway, which continues south onto Interstate 885 (I-885). The route is the main arterial through Durham, running alongside its downtown. It begins at a semi-directional T interchange with I-885 southeast of downtown Durham and runs northwest-southeast before merging into I-85 northwest of downtown Durham.
Wade Avenue is a route in The Triangle region of North Carolina that links Interstate 40 (I-40), I-440, and downtown Raleigh. The western segment of this road is a four-lane freeway and the eastern segment is an urban boulevard with a mix of at-grade intersections and grade-separated interchanges; I-440 beltway splits the segments. Wade Avenue provides a shortcut to North Raleigh for I-40 traffic via I-440; thus, along the west segment the eastbound direction is signed as TO I-440 and the westbound direction is signed as TO I-40. Wade Avenue's eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 401, shortly after an interchange with US 70 and North Carolina Highway 50.
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that travels 2,556.61 miles (4,114.46 km) from Barstow, California, to Wilmington, North Carolina. In North Carolina, I-40 travels 420.21 miles (676.26 km) across the entirety of the state from the Tennessee state line along the Pigeon River Gorge to U.S. Route 117 (US 117) and North Carolina Highway 132 (NC 132) in Wilmington. I-40 is the longest Interstate Highway in North Carolina and is the only Interstate to completely span the state from west to east.
Interstate 85 (I-85) is an Interstate Highway that runs from Montgomery, Alabama, to Richmond, Virginia. In North Carolina, I-85 travels 231.23 miles (372.13 km) from the South Carolina state line near Grover, North Carolina, to the Virginia state line near Wise. Despite being signed north–south, I-85 physically travels in a southwest–northeast direction across the state. The Interstate Highway connects the three most populous metropolitan areas of North Carolina: the Charlotte metropolitan area, Piedmont Triad, and Research Triangle, as well as nine of the 20 largest municipalities in the state. Outside of North Carolina, I-85 connects the state with Richmond, Virginia, to the north and Upstate South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia, to the south. I-85 parallels several US Highways including US Highway 29 (US 29) between South Carolina and Greensboro, US 70 between Greensboro and Durham, US 15 between Durham and Oxford, and US 1 between Henderson and Virginia.
U.S. Route 15 (US 15) is a north–south U.S. Highway running from Walterboro, South Carolina to Painted Post, New York. In the U.S. state of North Carolina the highway runs for 159 miles (256 km) from the South Carolina state line to the south of Laurinburg, North Carolina to the Virginia state line north of Bullock, North Carolina. US 15 travels in concurrency with U.S. Route 501 for 106 miles (171 km) between Laurinburg and Durham.
North Carolina Highway 98 (NC 98) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina and a semi-urban traffic artery connecting Durham, Wake Forest, and Bunn as well as many small to medium-sized towns in the north portion of The Triangle region of North Carolina. Running from downtown Durham, the route leaves the city to the east, running into a rural area near Falls Lake. As the road approaches Wake Forest, it widens to a four-lane divided highway and runs along the southern side of the city. Once leaving Wake Forest NC 98 becomes a two lane road again, running through rural areas east of Bunn. After a short concurrency with NC 39, NC 98 continues southeast to reach its eastern terminus at US 64 Alternate and NC 231 west of Spring Hope.
U.S. Route 70 (US 70) is a part of the United States Numbered Highway System that runs from Globe, Arizona, to the Crystal Coast of the US state of North Carolina. In North Carolina, it is a major 488-mile-long (785 km) east–west highway that runs from the Tennessee border to the Atlantic Ocean. From the Tennessee state line near Paint Rock to Asheville it follows the historic Dixie Highway, running concurrently with US 25. The highway connects several major cities including Asheville, High Point, Greensboro, Durham, Raleigh, Goldsboro, and New Bern. From Beaufort on east, US 70 shares part of the Outer Banks Scenic Byway, a National Scenic Byway, before ending in the community of Atlantic, located along Core Sound.
The Triangle Expressway (TriEx) is the first modern toll road built in North Carolina, and one of the first toll roads in the United States built to use only electronic toll collection instead of toll booths. The overall freeway consists of two segments called the Triangle Parkway and the Western Wake Freeway. The six-lane Triangle Parkway extends Interstate 885 (I-885) 3.5 miles (5.6 km) via North Carolina Highway 885 (NC 885) in Durham County to meet North Carolina Highway 540 (NC 540) in Morrisville in Wake County. The Western Wake Freeway extends the total Triangle Expressway to 17.5 miles (28.2 km) long, extending NC 540 where it continues along to Holly Springs.
Interstate 885 (I-885) and North Carolina Highway 885 (NC 885) is an 11.5-mile (18.5 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway and state highway in the US state of North Carolina. It links NC 540 and I-40 to I-85 in the Durham area. The route consisted of two preexisting segments of freeway—NC 147 to the south and US Highway 70 (US 70) to the north—connected by the East End Connector, which opened to traffic on June 30, 2022.
