I-40 interchange in Black Mountain also accelerated

From Staff Reports

The initial construction date for part of the I-26 Connector through Asheville has been advanced — by a year, the North Carolina Board of Transportation revealed on Jan. 7.

In addition, the board said it also will accelerate work to build a new Interstate 40 interchange in Black Mountain.

What’s more, the board said it has added several Asheville projects to the state’s long-term plan, which include building bicycle facilities to McDowell Street, between downtown and Biltmore Village; and to Broadway Street, between Interstate 240 and U.S. 19-23. 

The state Transportation Improvement Program updates were made possible through additional funding approved in the state’s 2015-16 budget. For instance, more than $200 million in gas tax and vehicle fee revenue that had gone to programs, such as the State Highway Patrol, was shifted instead to the Department of Transportation in the budget. Also, legislators increased vehicle fees.

Construction now is projected by the TIP to begin in 2023 on the portion of the I-26 Connector to run between the I-240/Patton Avenue interchange in West Asheville northeast to U.S. 19-23 near Montford. Work on that section, which would include a new crossing of the French Broad River north of Bowen Bridge, had been scheduled to start in 2024.

However, the new date, like virtually every project in the TIP, is subject to change, given that funding problems and planning issues often alter DOT schedules. 

Some local residents have said building new bridges over the French Broad to divert some traffic from Bowen Bridge is the most urgent part of the project because Bowen Bridge and the area around it see frequent accidents.

The schedule for other parts of the project is unchanged, including the following:

• Construction to reconfigure the I-26/I-40/I-240 interchange on the west side of the city and possibly widen part of I-40 is to begin in 2021.

• Construction of a wider I-240 in West Asheville is scheduled sometime after 2025.

Several years ago, the state DOT had planned to build an I-40 exit at Blue Ridge Road on the east side of Black Mountain, but opposition from neighborhood residents and local officials postponed that plan.

The TIP had said the state would begin buying property for the $5.8 million project in 2024, but released no date for construction. 

The state — under the new schedule —will start acquiring right-of-way in 2021, with construction will begin in 2023. 

A short section of Blue Ridge Road from I-40 to U.S. 70 would be widened to three lanes.