View NC tolls for I-95 in a larger map

NCDOT wants to collect tolls on I-95 to pay for a $4.4 billion widening and overhaul project, border to border (see today's story with map, photos and lots of reader comments).

The proposed electronic tolling network is designed to allow lots of North Carolina travelers to continue making short local trips on I-95 without paying tolls. It would make it difficult, but not impossible, for truckers and vacationers who travel longer distances to use I-95 without paying the toll.

As a result, truckers (25 percent of all I-95 traffic) and out-of-state cars and trucks (55 percent) could actually end up paying more than their share of the tolls.

Check the attached Google map to see how this would affect you and your trips on I-95. ... [MORE]

A new bridge to carry passenger trains across Capital Boulevard is part of the  alignment recommended this week by North Carolina and Virginia transportation officials for a proposed 162-mile track that would run trains as fast as 110 miles per hour between Raleigh and Richmond, Va.

The favored path for the proposed new track between the state capitals is described in a new 114-page draft recommendation report issued for the planned Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor from Charlotte to Washington, D.C.  The report explains the two states' recommendations for the entire path, which passes through Norlina, Henderson, Franklinton, Youngsville and Wake Forest on its way south from Virginia to join an existing Amtrak route in downtown Raleigh.

But no one knows whether the project will ever be built. [5pm update: Pay no attention to the misplaced star on DOT's map, above. There are no plans to bring trains onto the Governor Morehead School campus.] ... [MORE]

View NC 12 & NC Ferry Routes in a larger map

NCDOT will hold a final public hearing next Wednesday in Pamlico County -- and accept public comment until Thursday, Feb. 16 -- on its  plans to set higher rates for ferry tolls and commuter passes starting April 1.

Under orders from the General Assembly, NCDOT will start charging tolls on two commuter ferries now toll-free, and it will increase rates collected on three ferries where riders pay now (see 1/11/12 story with reader comments and more in 1/4/12 blog post - and more comments and photos with 2/5/12 story).

At the Feb. 15 meeting in Grantsboro, DOT officials will hear public comment after they outline the options they're considering:

Currituck - Knotts Island (Currituck Sound)
Free ferry, 45 minutes. Will remain toll-free. ... [MORE]

View 540 Outer Loop in a larger map

Seventeen miles of Raleigh's northern 540 Outer Loop will receive a fresh coat of asphalt this year in an $8.4 million repaving project that could start by the end of February.

The state Department of Transportation says it awarded the contract to the Fred Smith Co. of Raleigh. The work will cover all lanes of 540 from Interstate 40 near Research Triangle Park to Triangle Town Boulevard in northeast Raleigh.

The work will be done at night to reduce travel delays on the Outer Loop, which carries 78,000 cars and trucks each day.

All lanes will stay open from  6 a.m. to 9 p.m on weekdays, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays, and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays. The project also includes some shoulder repairs and work on ramps at interchanges.  Nov. 15 is the deadline for completion.

The first section of the 540 Outer Loop, from I-40 to U.S. 70, opened in January 1997.  The newest section included in the repaving project, between Falls of Neuse Road and Triangle Town Boulevard, opened in August 2002.

View NC 12 & NC Ferry Routes in a larger map

Ferry patrons will have two chances this week to speak out at public meetings -- tonight in Morehead City, Tuesday night in Southport -- about DOT plans to set higher rates for ferry tolls and commuter passes starting April 1.

Under orders from the General Assembly, DOT will start charging tolls on two commuter ferries now toll-free, and it will increase rates collected on three ferries where riders pay now (see 1/11/12 story with reader comments) and more in 1/4/12 blog post).

At this week's meetings and another one Feb. 15 in Grantsboro, DOT officials will hear public comment after they outline the options they're considering:

Currituck - Knotts Island (Currituck Sound)
Free ferry, 45 minutes. Will remain toll-free.

Swan Quarter - Ocracoke (Pamlico Sound)
Toll $15 for car & driver. 2 hours 30 minutes.
Proposed new toll $25 to $33, plus possible $5 passenger fare.
One-year commuter pass (now $150) proposed $300, $400 or $500.

Hatteras - Ocracoke (Hatteras Inlet)
Free ferry, 40 minutes. Will remain toll-free.

Bayview - Aurora (Neuse River)
Free ferry, 30 minutes.
Proposed new toll $10 or $12 for car & driver, plus possible $2 passenger fare.
Proposed one-year commuter pass $200, $400 or $500.

Cedar Island - Ocracoke (Pamlico Sound)
Toll $15 for car & driver. 2 hours 15 minutes.
Proposed new toll $25 to $33, plus possible $5 passenger fare.
One-year commuter pass (now $150) proposed $300, $400 or $500.

Cherry Branch - Minnesott Beach (Neuse River)
Free ferry, 20 minutes.
Proposed new toll $4 or $7 for car & driver, plus possible $1 passenger fare.
Proposed one-year commuter pass $150, $400 or $500.

Southport - Fort Fisher (Cape Fear River)
Toll $5 for car & driver. 35 minutes.
Proposed new toll $10 or $12, plus possible $2 passenger fare.
Proposed one-year commuter pass $200, $400 or $500.

Here are the public meeting locations:

Tonight (Monday, Jan. 30), 7 p.m.
Morehead City-Beaufort, NC No. 1710 Elks Lodge
400 Miller Farm Road, Morehead City
 
Tuesday, Jan. 31, 7 p.m.
I.L.A. Union Hall
211 W. 10th St., Southport

Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7 p.m.
Pamlico Community College
Ned Everett Delamar Center Auditorium
5049 Highway 306 S., Grantsboro

Karen E. Fussell, a Wilmington native and a 22-year veteran of the state Department of Transportation, today became the first woman ever to be named a DOT division engineer when she was put in charge of all Highway Division work in the six-county Division Three.

Fussell has an undergraduate degree in civil engineering from N.C. State University and is a licensed professional engineer. She will oversee DOT employees in Brunswick, Duplin, New Hanover, Onslow, Pender and Sampson counties.

“We are proud to name Karen as Division 3’s new division engineer,” Jim Trogdon, DOT chief operating officer, said in a news release. “Karen has proven her ability to manage large projects, engage the community and build effective and efficient teams.”

In her most recent job, Fussell was a resident engineer overseeing road projects in the Wilson area. She starts her new job Monday, in Division 3 office at Castle Hayne, at a salary of $115,232.

View US 70 Clayton Bypass in a larger map

The state Department of Transportation says it will continue for the next several years an unusual traffic lane change put in place last September as an experiment on westbound Interstate 40 at the U.S. 70 Clayton Bypass:

To make the morning rush hour run more smoothly, DOT closed one of three lanes on I-40 and one of two lanes on U.S. 70 as it merges with I-40. The lane slimming was called temporary in September, but DOT will install lane markings to make it semi-permanent on Wednesday.  Traffic studies indicate that the morning drive runs a bit smoother and faster with two lanes than it did with three lanes. ... [MORE]

NCDOT says it wants to get moving on long-sought improvements to Interstate 95, starting in 2016 with a project to add lanes along 60 busy miles between Lumberton in Robeson County and Interstate 40 in Johnston County.

The state expects to join Virginia in winning federal approval to pay for improvements to I-95 by collecting tolls from its drivers. A long-range plan to add lanes, rebuild interchanges and replace bridges is estimated to cost $4.4 billion.

The Federal Highway Administration recently approved an environmental assessment of NCDOT's plans for upgrading I-95 from Virginia to South Carolina. Public hearings are scheduled from Feb. 7 to Feb. 27. Details and documents are online at www.driving95.com.

Traveling on Main Street is about to get a bit more difficult, and it's going to stay that way for more than a year.

Three reconstruction projects are scheduled for Main Street between Ninth Street and Peabody, including replacement of the Campus Drive bridge. ...

View Capital Boulevard in a larger map

Road work will close one of two lanes on northbound Capital Boulevard daily this week between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., NCDOT says.

All lanes will be open during the morning and afternoon rush hour, but this work is likely to cause traffic backups during the day.

It's for bridge and road maintenance work expected to take four or five days, depending on the weather.  There's rain in the forecast later this week, and that could push completion of this work into next week.