U.S. Route 401 (US 401) is a north–south United States highway, a spur of U.S. Route 1, that travels along the Fall Line from Sumter, South Carolina to Interstate 85 near Wise, North Carolina.
 U.S. Route 401 | |||||||||
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 US 401 highlighted in red | |||||||||
| Route information | |||||||||
| Auxiliary route of US 1 | |||||||||
| Length | 251.0 mi[citation needed] (403.9 km) | ||||||||
| Existed | 1957–present | ||||||||
| Major junctions | |||||||||
| South end |    US 76 Bus. / US 521 in Sumter, SC | ||||||||
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| North end |   I-85 / US 1 near Wise, NC | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||
| States | South Carolina, North Carolina | ||||||||
| Counties | SC: Sumter, Lee, Darlington, Marlboro NC: Scotland, Hoke, Cumberland, Harnett, Wake, Franklin, Warren | ||||||||
| Highway system | |||||||||
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Route description
editStarting in Sumter, South Carolina, US 401 goes northeast through mostly swamp and farmland, as it connects the cities of Darlington and Bennettsville before crossing the state line into North Carolina. Traversing the state for 77.2 miles (124.2 km), it is mostly a two-lane rural road, which is likely to only have local traffic along it due to nearby Interstate 95.[1]
In North Carolina, the highway becomes more utilized, as it connects several mid-size and large cities in the state. In the sandhills region, it connects the cities of Laurinburg, Raeford, and Fayetteville, all three of which have business routes connecting the downtown areas. The road is typically two-lane still, but expands to four-lane (or more) in each city. The road then runs somewhat parallel to nearby Interstate 95 from Fayetteville through Lillington to Fuquay-Varina.
In Wake County, US 401 is center-stage again as a major north–south corridor, connecting bedroom communities to downtown Raleigh. Once it leaves the county, it reverts to a rural road connecting the small cities of Louisburg and Warrenton. US 401 finally ends at Interstate 85, just north of the community of Wise; completing a 173.8-mile (279.7 km) through the state.[2]
History
edit
US 401 was established in 1957 as a renumbering of US 15A, from Sumter to Raleigh, and NC 59, from Raleigh to Norlina; it is the third and current route to bear the name.
In 1967, northbound US 401 was rerouted along South Street west onto McDowell Street, formally using Lenoir Street, in Raleigh.[3] That same year, US 401 was rerouted onto a bypass route northwest of downtown Fayetteville, replacing part of NC 59; its old alignment became US 401 Business.[4] In 1971, US 52/US 401 was placed on a new bypass northwest of Darlington; its old alignment became US 52 Business.[5] In 1984, US 401 was rerouted along the eastern half of the Raleigh Beltline (Tom Bradshaw Freeway and Cliff Benson Beltline); its former alignment through downtown Raleigh was downgraded to secondary roads. In 1991, US 401 was rerouted back through downtown Raleigh after I-440 was established along the entire Raleigh Beltline.[6][7] In 2001, US 401 was extended north, in concurrency with US 1, to its current northern terminus to I-85, north of Norlina.[8][9] On July 16, 2015, US 401 was placed onto new four-lane superstreet alignment bypassing east of Rolesville; its former alignment through downtown Rolesville became US 401 Business.[10][11]
The first US 401 existed between 1926 and 1931, solely in Virginia, it was replaced by US 52. The second US 401 existed between 1932 and 1934, in North Carolina and South Carolina, it was replaced by US 15 and US 15A.
Future
editConsidered an important link between Fayetteville, Lillington and Raleigh, NCDOT has set up the US 401 Corridor Study. The purpose of the study is to identify deficiencies in the existing corridor and develop alternatives for accommodating future growth in traffic volumes (i.e. widen to multi-lanes). The corridor study also includes NC 55 and NC 210. Estimated costs for all road improvements along the corridor is around $193–222.6 million. Property acquisition and construction is unfunded at this time.[12][13][14]
Junction list
edit| State | County | Location | mi[1][2] | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Carolina | Sumter | Sumter | 0.0 | 0.0 | US 521 (Washington Street) / US 76 Bus. | |
| 0.5 | 0.80 |  US 15 (Lafayette Drive) – Summerton, Bishopville | ||||
| 1.9 | 3.1 |  US 76 / US 378 (Robert E. Graham Freeway) – Conway, Columbia | ||||
| Lee | St. Charles | 12.6 | 20.3 |  SC 154 (St. Charles Highway) – Mayesville, Bishopville | ||
| Elliott | 17.1 | 27.5 |  SC 527 (Elliott Highway) – Kingstree, Bishopville | |||
| | 18.6 | 29.9 |  SC 341 (Lynchburg Highway) – Lynchburg, Bishopville | |||
| Darlington | Lamar | 24.5 | 39.4 | Main Street / Lee State Park Road – Lee State Park | ||
| | 27.4 | 44.1 |  SC 403 (Oates Highway) – Timmonsville, Hartsville | |||
| | 28.0 | 45.1 |  I-20 – Florence, Columbia | |||
| Darlington | 37.8 | 60.8 |   US 52 south (Governor Williams Highway) – Florence | South end of US 52 overlap | ||
| 38.2 | 61.5 |   SC 34 / SC 151 (Harry Byrd Highway) – Hartsville, Darlington, Charlotte | Interchange | |||
| | 41.1 | 66.1 | US 52 Bus. south (Main Street) – Darlington | |||
| | 52.3 | 84.2 | US 15 south (Hartsville Highway) – Hartsville | South end of US 15 overlap | ||
| Society Hill | 54.3 | 87.4 |  US 52 north (Cheraw Highway) – Cheraw | North end of US 52 overlap | ||
| Marlboro | | 61.3 | 98.7 |  SC 912 (Willamette Road) | ||
| Bennettsville | 64.6 | 104.0 |   SC 385 north (Main Street) – Bennettsville | |||
| 65.6 | 105.6 |   SC 9 north / SC 38 north (Cottingham Boulevard) – Cheraw | North end of SC 9/38 overlap | |||
| 66.5 | 107.0 |   SC 38 south / SC 9 Bus. north / SC 38 Bus. north (Broad Street) – Marion, Myrtle Beach | South end of SC 38 overlap | |||
| 67.6 | 108.8 | SC 9 south (Tyson Avenue) – North Myrtle Beach, Dillon | South end of SC 9 overlap | |||
| |  I-73 | Proposed interchange[15][16] | ||||
| McColl | 75.6 | 121.7 |  SC 381 (Main Street) – Clio, Blenheim, Hamlet | |||
| 77.2 0.0 | 124.2 0.0 | South Carolina–North Carolina state line | ||||
| North Carolina | Scotland | Laurinburg | 5.2 | 8.4 |  US 15 Bus. north / US 401 Bus. north (Main Street) | |
| 5.8 | 9.3 |    I-74 / US 74 / US 501 south – Rockingham, Lumberton, Wilmington | South end of US 501 overlap | |||
| 7.0 | 11.3 | US 74 Bus. (Church Street) | ||||
| 8.8 | 14.2 | US 15 Bus. south / US 501 Bus. south (Aberdeen Road) US 15 north / US 501 north (Aberdeen Road) – Aberdeen, Sanford | North end of US 15/US 501 overlap | |||
| 9.8 | 15.8 | US 401 Bus. south (Wagram Road) | ||||
| Wagram | 16.8 | 27.0 |   NC 144 west (Old Wire Road) | To John Charles McNeill House | ||
| Hoke | Raeford | 26.9 | 43.3 | US 401 Bus. north (Harris Avenue) | ||
| 27.2 | 43.8 |   To NC 211 (Teal Drive) | ||||
| | 31.4 | 50.5 | US 401 Bus. south – Raeford | |||
| Cumberland | Fayetteville | 43.8 | 70.5 | US 401 Bus. north (Raeford Road) | ||
| 46.3 | 74.5 | All American Expressway – Fort Bragg, Pope Army Airfield | ||||
| 47.1 | 75.8 |   NC 24 / NC 87 (Bragg Boulevard) | ||||
| 49.4 | 79.5 |  NC 210 | ||||
| 51.7 | 83.2 | US 401 Bus. south (Ramsey Street) | ||||
| 55.2 | 88.8 |      I-295 north to I-95 / US 13 | ||||
| | 64.3 | 103.5 |  NC 217 north (Linden Road) – Linden | |||
| Harnett | Lillington | 74.9 | 120.5 | NC 210 south – Spring Lake, Fort Bragg | South end of NC 210 overlap | |
| 75.0 | 120.7 |  NC 27 west (Old Road) – Cameron, Carthage | West end of NC 27 overlap | |||
| 75.4 | 121.3 |  US 421 north (Front Street) – Sanford | North end of US 421 overlap; to Raven Rock State Park | |||
| 77.0 | 123.9 |  US 421 south / NC 27 east / NC 210 north – Erwin, Dunn, Angier | South end of US 421, east end of NC 27, and north end of NC 210 overlap | |||
| Wake | Fuquay Varina | 89.7 | 144.4 |  NC 42 west (Academy Street) – Sanford | West end of NC 42 overlap | |
| 90.5 | 145.6 |  NC 55 west (Ennis Street) – Holly Springs | West end of NC 55 overlap | |||
| 92.5 | 148.9 | NC 42 east / NC 55 east – Angier, Clayton | East end of NC 42/NC 55 overlap | |||
| | 97.7 | 157.2 |   NC 540 Toll | |||
| Garner | 103.8 | 167.0 |   US 70 east / NC 50 south – Garner, Smithfield, Goldsboro | East end of US 70 and south end of NC 50 overlap | ||
| Raleigh | 104.8 | 168.7 | Wilmington Street – Downtown Raleigh | |||
| 105.5 | 169.8 |   I-40 / US 64 – Cary, Durham, Benson | ||||
| 106.7 | 171.7 | Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard / Western Boulevard | ||||
| 108.2 | 174.1 | Peace Street | ||||
| 108.7 | 174.9 | US 70 west / NC 50 north (Wade Avenue) – RDU Airport, Research Triangle Park | West end of US 70 and north end of NC 50 overlap | |||
| 108.8 | 175.1 | Fairview Avenue | Northbound left exit, no northbound entrance | |||
| 109.5 | 176.2 | North Wake Forest Road | No southbound exit | |||
| 109.7 | 176.5 | South Wake Forest Road / Atlantic Avenue | ||||
| 111.2 | 179.0 |  I-440 / US 1 south – Sanford, Rocky Mount | South end of US 1 overlap | |||
| 113.5 | 182.7 | US 1 north (Capital Boulevard) – Wake Forest, Henderson | North end of US 1 overlap | |||
| 115.9 | 186.5 |  I-540 – Rocky Mount, Wilson, Durham | SPUI | |||
| | 125.5 | 202.0 |  NC 96 (Zebulon Road) – Zebulon, Youngsville | |||
| Franklin | | 127.4 | 205.0 |  NC 98 – Bunn, Wake Forest | ||
| Louisburg | 136.9 | 220.3 |  NC 56 west – Franklinton | West end of NC 56 overlap | ||
| 137.6 | 221.4 |  NC 39 south – Bunn | South end of NC 39 overlap | |||
| 138.5 | 222.9 |  NC 56 east / NC 581 south (Nash Street) – Rocky Mount | East end of NC 56 overlap | |||
| 139.1 | 223.9 |  NC 561 east – Centerville | ||||
| Ingleside | 144.0 | 231.7 | NC 39 north – Henderson | North end of NC 39 overlap | ||
| Warren | Warrenton | 162.3 | 261.2 |   US 158 Bus. east / NC 58 south (Macon Street) – Macon, Centerville | East end of US 158 Business overlap | |
| Norlina | 165.5 | 266.3 | US 158 east – Macon, Roanoke Rapids | East end of US 158 and west end of US 158 Business overlap | ||
| 166.7 | 268.3 | US 1 south / US 158 west – Middleburg, Henderson | South end of US 1 and west end of US 158 overlap | |||
| | 173.8 | 279.7 | I-85 / US 1 north – Henderson, Richmond | Continuation as US 1 | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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Special routes
editSee also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b "Overview map of US 401 in South Carolina" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved February 26, 2013.
- ^ a b "Overview map of US 401 in North Carolina" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved November 29, 2011.
- ^ "Route Change (1967-03-09)" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. March 9, 1967. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ "Route Changes (1967-11-03)" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. November 3, 1967. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee (November 7, 1970). "U.S. Route Numbering Subcommittee Agenda Showing Action Taken by the Executive Committee" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway Officials. p. 6. Retrieved August 2, 2015 – via Wikimedia Commons.
- ^ Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (June 10, 1991). "Report of the Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering to the Executive Committee" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ "Route Changes (1991-07-16)" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. July 16, 1991. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering (May 19, 2001). "Report of the Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering to the Standing Committee on Highways" (PDF) (Report). Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2017. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ "Route Changes (2001-06-29)" (PDF). North Carolina Department of Transportation. June 29, 2001. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
- ^ "Special Committee on U. S. Route Numbering - Louisville, Kentucky - Report to SCOH". AASHTO. May 29, 2014. Archived from the original (DOC) on May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
- ^ WTVD Staff (July 16, 2015). "DOT opens 6-mile long Rolesville Bypass". Durham, NC: WTVD. Retrieved July 25, 2015.
- ^ "NCDOT: US 401 Corridor Study". Retrieved November 28, 2011.
- ^ "NCDOT: US 401 Corridor Study Project Map" (PDF). Retrieved November 28, 2011.
- ^ "NCDOT: Project R-2609". Retrieved November 28, 2011.
- ^ Staff. "Project Status: Northern Project". I-73 Environmental Impact Study. South Carolina Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 26, 2013.
- ^ I-73 Northern Map (PDF) (Map). South Carolina Department of Transportation. Bennettsvile inset. Retrieved February 26, 2013.
External links
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