NCDOT now knows the route of a planned Kinston bypass and when construction will begin
The N.C. Department of Transportation now knows where it wants to build a new bypass around Kinston but says construction won’t begin for several years.
NCDOT released a map showing the route of a 22-mile four-lane divided highway between LaGrange and Dover. The freeway follows the current path of U.S. 70, except for a new 6.5-mile stretch south of the current U.S. 70 Bypass.
The new highway would carry traffic at up to 70 mph and will make it possible for beach traffic get around Kinston without stopping. It will avoid the shopping centers, hotels, restaurants and gas stations that have grown up along the stretch of U.S. 70 that was built in the 1950s to bypass downtown Kinston.
A similar U.S. 70 bypass around Goldsboro was completed in 2016.
NCDOT considered 12 options for building the bypass around Kinston, all on the south side of town. After several public meetings, the department says it chose the most direct route, with the shortest stretch of new roadway, the least impact on wetlands and the most public support.
A map released Thursday shows the basic route. The state must create more detailed designs and complete a study on the environmental effects. It expects to begin acquiring the land it needs in 2023, but construction wouldn’t begin until 2027.
NCDOT lists the cost of the project at $379.1 million.
Turning U.S. 70 into a freeway means building several interchanges along the way. On the west side of Kinston, there will be interchanges at Willie Measley/Jim Sutton roads, Albert Sugg/Barwick Station roads and C.F. Harvey Parkway.
The new bypass section would have interchanges at N.C. 11/N.C. 55, U.S. 258 (South Queen Street) and N.C. 58. On the east side of Kinston, there will be new interchanges at Wyse Fork/Caswell Station roads and West Kornegay Street in Dover.
And there will be interchanges where the new bypass section diverges and joins the current U.S. 70 on either side of Kinston.
The entire 22-mile freeway around Kinston will be built to interstate highway standards, allowing it to someday become part of Interstate 42, which is expected to run from I-40 near Garner to Morehead City.
For more information on the Kinston bypass project, go to www.ncdot.gov/projects/kinston-bypass/
This story was originally published February 21, 2020 at 5:45 AM with the headline "NCDOT now knows the route of a planned Kinston bypass and when construction will begin."
