North Carolina Highway 147
NC Highway 147 | ||||
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Route information | ||||
Maintained by NCDOT | ||||
Length: | 15.7 mi[1] (25.3 km) | |||
Existed: | 1987 – present | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end: | ![]() |
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North end: | ![]() |
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Location | ||||
Counties: | Wake, Durham | |||
Highway system | ||||
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North Carolina Highway 147 (NC 147) is a North Carolina state highway. The route is a 15.7-mile-long (25.3 km) freeway that connects the Research Triangle Park to both Western Wake County and the city of Durham.
Contents
Route description
The route's entire length is a limited access freeway; linking NC 540 in Morrisville with the Research Triangle Park (RTP), Downtown Durham and Interstates 40 and 85. It is a fairly urbanized commuter-route and suffers from peak-traffic during conventional rush hours. Speed limits on the freeway range from 55 mph (89 km/h) to 65 mph (105 km/h).
From NC 540 to Interstate 40, the highway is a toll road, part of the Triangle Expressway. Tolling on this stretch of NC 147 began on January 3, 2012.[2][3]
Its northern terminus with Interstate 85 is a partial interchange, where northbound NC 147 merges onto southbound I-85 and vice versa. Travelers wanting to go north on I-85 and vice versa must utilize the nearby U.S. 15-501 freeway.
Dedicated and memorial names
NC 147 features one dedicated stretch of freeway. The Buck Dean Expressway is the official name of NC 147 within the city limits of Durham that was approved on December 14, 1984.[4]
Tolls
![](/w/images/thumb/b/b2/Triangle_Expressway_Toll_Rate_Sign.jpg/300px-Triangle_Expressway_Toll_Rate_Sign.jpg)
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Tolls along NC 147 are done by electronic toll collection (ETC) and are enforced by video cameras. Several gantries are located along the route and entrance/exit ramps, where they collect toll via the NC Quick Pass or other interoperable ETC systems. Those that do not participate in the ETC program will receive a bill in the mail and will have 30 days from date on bill before additional fees and civil penalties are applied.[5]
History
The Durham Freeway began with a 1962 bond referendum.[6] The first section of the road, completed in 1970 around downtown Durham, was designated Interstate 40.[citation needed] The original section extended from Chapel Hill Street to Alston Avenue and resulted in the destruction of a portion of the Hayti neighborhood as part of urban renewal,[7] though a DOT engineer said the neighborhood likely would have been torn down anyway. The road was later extended west to Erwin Road and southward to where it now meets the current I-40, but the decision was made for I-40 to bypass Durham. The section inside the city was renamed. The road's other names have included East-West Expressway and the I.L. "Buck" Dean Freeway.[6]
In 1979, planners said many of the city's roads needed widening, and the decision was made to extend the freeway to I-85. The first section in 1982 disrupted the Crest Street neighborhood, but the N.C. DOT moved 181 houses instead of tearing them down, an action that resulted in a 1987 third-place Federal Highway Administration award for "historic preservation and cultural enhancement".[6] Eventually, the problems that caused the original I-40 extension to I-85 to be delayed were overcome, and NC 147 was extended through the city.[citation needed] Work began in 1993, and the eastbound lanes opened May 21, 1997.[8] The section connecting the road to I-85 opened July 31, 1998.[7]
On September 6, 2011, the south termini at T.W. Alexander Drive (exit 4) was permanently closed to make way for NC 147's extension to NC 540 in Morrisville; this made I-40 the temporary southern termini for three months. On December 8, 2011, the southern extension was opened. Dubbed the Triangle Parkway, the 3.4-mile (5.5 km) stretch of road is also part of the Triangle Expressway.[2][3][9][10]
Future
There is one current and one future project involving NC 147. The first is the East End Connector which began construction in March 2015.[11] This project, which will build a direct freeway connection designed to interstate standards between the Durham Freeway and north of the U.S. 70/N.C. 98, and which has been delayed many times, is now scheduled to be completed by July 2019.[12] The proposed future project is the NC 147 extension to McCrimmon Parkway, in Morrisville, which is scheduled for Reprioritization.[13][14]
Junction list
County | Location | mi[1] | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
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Wake | Morrisville | McCrimmon Parkway | Proposed extension (unfunded)[13][14] | |||
1.5 | 2.4 | 1 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Southbound exit left; Triangle Expressway continues NC 540 south | ||
Durham | RTP | 2.5 | 4.0 | 2 / 3 | Davis Drive / Hopson Road | Signed exit 2 northbound, exit 3 southbound |
4 | T.W. Alexander Drive | Permanently closed as of September 6, 2011[9][10] | ||||
4.5 | 7.2 | 5 | ![]() ![]() |
Triangle Expressway begins; signed as exit 5A (east) and 5B (west) | ||
5.5 | 8.9 | 6 | Cornwallis Road – Research Triangle Park | |||
6.5 | 10.5 | 7 | T.W. Alexander Drive | |||
7.5 | 12.1 | 8 | Ellis Road | |||
Durham | 9 | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
East End Connector (under construction)[11][15] | |||
10.5 | 16.9 | 10 | Briggs Avenue – Durham Technical Community College | |||
11.3 | 18.2 | 11 | ![]() |
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11.8 | 19.0 | 12A | Fayetteville Street – North Carolina Central University | |||
12.0 | 19.3 | 12B | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
To Durham Bulls Athletic Park | ||
12.6 | 20.3 | 12C | Duke Street | No southbound exit; To North Carolina Museum of Life and Science | ||
13.0 | 20.9 | 13 | Chapel Hill Street | |||
13.7 | 22.0 | 14 | ![]() ![]() |
To North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics and Northgate Mall | ||
14.3 | 23.0 | 15A | Elba Street / Trent Drive | Northbound exit, southbound entrance; to Duke Medical Center | ||
14.8 | 23.8 | 15B | Hillandale Road / Fulton Street | To Veterans Affairs Medical Center | ||
15.7 | 25.3 | 16 | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Signed as exits 16A (north) and 16B (south) | ||
17.2 | 27.7 | ![]() |
Northbound exit, southbound entrance | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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Interstate 885
Interstate 885 | |
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Location: | Durham, North Carolina |
Interstate 885 (I-885) is the proposed designation traversing between I-40 and I-85/US 15, in Durham and the RTP area. Its appearance was released on August 19, 2014 when the October project letting was released, which included I-885 in the sign plans. NCDOT also listed in the documentation that fabrication of the signs cannot proceed until approval of the route is completed via FHWA; thus this routing is, for now, a proposal.[11][15]
If approved and designated, the interstate would begin at the I-40/NC 147 interchange (exit 279) then go north in concurrency with NC 147 to the East End Connector, where it will switch to US 70. Continuing north in concurrency with US 70, it ends at the I-85/US 15/US 70 interchange (exit 178). The existing exit numbers now on NC 147 and US 70 would be replaced by I-885.
No official request has been submitted to AASHTO or FHWA; this route is currently proposed by NCDOT and is subject to change. The East End Connector is slated to be completed by July 2019.[16]
References
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- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to North Carolina Highway 147. |
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- State highways in North Carolina
- Transportation in Wake County, North Carolina
- Transportation in Durham County, North Carolina
- Freeways in North Carolina
- Transportation in Durham, North Carolina