Interstate 285 (North Carolina)

Interstate 285
Future route of I-285 highlighted in red
Route information
Length	23.0 mi (37.0 km)
Major junctions
South end	I-85 / US 29 / US 52 / US 70 near Lexington
North end	I-40 / US 52 / US 311 / NC 8 in Winston-Salem
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future North Carolina Highway System Interstate U.S. State Scenic

Interstate 285 (I-285) in the U.S. state of North Carolina is a future designation for a connector Interstate route between Lexington and Winston-Salem. The route was approved in February 2018 to be established later the same year.

Route description

Currently, I-285 appears only as future corridor signs along U.S. Route 52 (US 52) from I-85 near Lexington to I-40 in Winston-Salem. The route will provide a direct Interstate Highway connection between Charlotte (via I-85) and Winston-Salem. Currently the northern part of the route uses US 52, which is fully controlled access, but below Interstate standards.

History

Approved by American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in September 2005, after receiving an earlier approval from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in July 2005, I-285 would connect I-85 to Winston-Salem and run concurrently with US 52 for a total of 23 miles (37 km). The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) installed "Future Interstate 285 Corridor" signs along the route in February 2006. These signs will remain until improvements are made to bring the road up to Interstate Highway standards whereby the route will receive its I-285 signs. The $2.5 million project to improve the roadway was scheduled to start in October 2011.^[1][2]

With property acquisition already started in December 2012, actual upgrades along US 52 were estimated to cost $8.57 million. The contract was awarded to J.T. Russell and Sons Inc. of Albemarle for $7.6 million. Construction began in March 2014 and include reconstructing shoulders, improving drainage systems, resurfacing travel lanes, and realigning Marco Boulevard to accommodate a new southbound exit ramp alignment at Green Needles Road. In addition, crews resurfaced and preserved the bridges over Swearing Creek. The project was completed in late 2017.

On February 15, 2018, the FHWA approved the I-285 signing between I-85 and I-40 which will happen later in the year.^[3]

Future

An unconfirmed section of Future I-285 is to continue north of I-40, through downtown Winston-Salem, to the proposed Winston-Salem Northern Beltway.^[4][5]

Exit list

Current exit numbers are based on US 52 mileage.

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Davidson	​			—	I-85 south / US 29 south / US 52 south / US 70 west – Salisbury, Charlotte	Southern terminus
	​			84	NC 47 east to I-85 north – Linwood
	​			85	Green Needles Road
	Lexington			86	Salisbury Road – Downtown Lexington
				87	I-85 Bus. north / US 29 north / US 70 east – Thomasville, High Point
				89	US 64 – Lexington, Mocksville
	​			92	NC 8 south (Old US Hwy 52) – Welcome
	Welcome			97	Old US Hwy 52 – Midway
	Midway			100	Hickory Tree Road
Forsyth	Winston-Salem			103	South Main Street
				105	Clemmonsville Road
				107	I-40 / US 52 north / US 311 south / NC 8 north – Statesville, Greensboro, High Point	Northern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Interstate 285 (North Carolina).

Route map:

• NCRoads.com: I-285