Craven County has a number of major N.C. Department of Transportation road projects planned over the next several years, from ongoing road improvements and bypass construction to future roundabouts.
During the Feb. 20 meeting of the Craven County Commissioners, Jeff Cabaniss, NCDOT division engineer, informed the board about ongoing and planned county projects that he said would total at least $800 million.
“In my 31 years with NCDOT I don’t know of any other county with as much construction going on as close together as Craven does right now,” Cabaniss said.
N.C. 43 Connector
NCDOT has been working to extend the N.C. 43 from U.S. 17 Business in New Bern to south of U.S. 70/U.S. 17. The $27 million project will create an extension from U.S. 17 that will connect from Trent Creek Rd. in New Bern to the south of U.S. 70. The project is proposed as a four-lane, median-divided highway. Trent Creek Rd. will also be widened to four lanes.
Cabaniss said right-of-way acquisition is still ongoing for the project, which is scheduled to be awarded to a contractor by Dec. 2024.
According to NCDOT, the project is based on the economic development of Craven County, projected traffic volumes and continued needs for connectivity in the area. The goals of the project are to alleviate existing and future congestion, provide connectivity between the community and local destinations, and reduce congestion-related accidents.
Cabaniss said NCDOT has acquired three-quarters of the required right-of-ways for the project so far. “That’s important because once we get that we can start coordinating the utilities to start getting moved,” he said.
The N.C. 43 Connector project was added to NCDOT’s Statewide Transportation Improvement Program in 2017. Construction was scheduled to begin nearly four years ago, but was paused due to financial shortages experienced by the agency in 2019-20.
James City Project
This ongoing project is designed to improve traffic flow and add vehicle capacity along the U.S. 70 corridor in the James City area in order to upgrade the highway to interstate standards for the future I-42.
The $322 million project will improve traffic on a 5.1-mile stretch from east of Thurman Rd. to the Neuse River Bridge. The work will include the elimination of the existing traffic signals at intersections at Williams Rd., Airport Rd., Grantham Rd., Taberna Way and Thurman Rd. in James City. U.S. 70 will have overpasses with exit and entrance ramps at each of the five interchanges and service roads for local business and community access.
The project was awarded to the construction group Balfour Beatty in Sept. 2019 and is approximately 33% complete. Stage 1 of construction began in the spring of 2021 and the entire project is expected to be completed in late 2024, according to Cabaniss.
Utility relocation is underway and new service roads are being constructed, he noted.
The contract for the work was divided into two sections: a 2.6-mile stretch of U.S. 70 from east of Thurman Rd. to Garner Rd. and a 2.5-mile stretch of U.S. 70 between Garner Rd. and the Neuse River Bridge
Havelock Bypass
Construction is underway to build a bypass on the southwest side of Havelock and U.S. 70 beginning north of the Havelock city limits at Pine Grove and extending south approximately 10 miles to just south of the Craven-Carteret County line.
Funded for $221.5 million, the Havelock Bypass will be a four-lane, median-divided highway designed to provide a high-speed alternative to using U.S. 70 through Havelock, which is hampered by numerous traffic signals at intersecting side streets.
According to NCDOT, the roadway will help improve traffic and freight movement along the U.S. 70 corridor, which is a major connection from the Morehead City Port to Raleigh, and assist economic development in eastern North Carolina’s rural areas.
According to Cabaniss, the project is 58% complete. Construction began in the fall of 2019 and is expected to be completed in the spring of 2024.
U.S. 70 Upgrades
Planning and development are underway to upgrade U.S. 70 to interstate standards, from the Havelock Bypass to east of Thurman Rd. The project, funded at $275.1 million, will include three new interchanges over 6.6 miles at Camp Kira Rd., Fisher Ave., and Stately Pines Rd.
The work was awarded to Balfour Beatty last month.
Cabaniss said NCDOT is currently coordinating with the U.S. Forestry Service-District Ranger Station as well as the Federal Highway Administration on land transfers for the project.
Cabaniss noted that the same contractor, Balfour Beatty, is working on the Havelock Bypass, James City project, and U.S. 70 upgrades.
“That’s very attractive to us. We’re glad that worked out because they can make it all work seamlessly,” Cabaniss said. “We’re hoping this project will dovetail right in between Havelock and James City.”
Maple Cypress Road Bridge Replacement
NCDOT has replaced the bridge over the Neuse River on Maple Cypress Rd. Cabaniss said the project is running approximately one year ahead of schedule. The new bridge is already in place and the old one is in the process of being torn down.
Future Projects
Looking to the latter half of 2023 and beyond, Cabaniss outlined a number of NCDOT projects that include new roundabouts in the New Bern and Vanceboro areas, as well as highway widening and road improvement work.
New Bern Roundabout
A planned roundabout at the intersection of Neuse Blvd. and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. is scheduled to go under contract in the summer of 2028. According to Cabaniss, the $4.5 million project will be significantly larger than the existing roundabout at the end of Broad St.
“The design that we use is for the tractor-trailers, school buses, and any kind of emergency vehicles,” he said. “The good thing about this design is it has free-flowing lanes, so if you’re not going to turn left you’ll just stay in the outside lane and go on through.”
River Road Roundabout
NCDOT also plans to construct a roundabout at River Rd. and Nelson Rd. at an estimated cost of $1.4 million. The project is scheduled to go under contract in April, with construction scheduled to begin this summer. The roundabout is set to be completed by Dec. 2023
Widening U.S. 17
Scheduled for spring 2028, this project will widen U.S. 17 from two 12-foot lanes to four 12-foot lanes with a 30-foot grass median. The project, which is estimated to cost $87 million, will tie into the recently widened section of U.S. 17 at Bridgeton and provide 9 miles of a continuous four-lane roadway to Spruill Town Rd. The addition of a median will limit left turns into most driveways along the corridor. U-turn areas will be included to allow turn-around movements at various locations.
Havelock Road Widening
With a scheduled start date of fall 2028, this estimated $37 million project will widen Miller Blvd. and Fontana Blvd. from Lake Rd. to Outer Banks Dr. in Havelock to four lanes and add a roundabout at Miller Blvd./Lake Rd.
River Road Resurfacing
Set to go under contract this spring, this NCDOT project will resurface 14.31 miles of River Rd. from N.C. 118 to N.C. 43 and widen the road by 2 feet on either side.
Cabaniss said the resurfacing process would involve grinding the existing asphalt and dirt and injecting concrete into it.
“What it does is make a foundation where the road’s never really had a foundation,” he said. “We don’t do many of these because of the expense. Once it’s finished it will be a very good road for a long time.”
By Todd Wetherington, co-editor. Send an email with questions or comments.