The city of Raleigh finished the new Edwards Mill Road extension from Trinity Road to N.C. 54 last week, opening a long-sought relief valve for monster traffic jams at big events in that part of town.
Edwards Mill was widened and extended over the past two decades to carry fans south from Glenwood and Wade avenues to big events at the N.C. State Fairgrounds, the RBC Center and Carter-Finley Stadium.
But the four-lane, divided road stopped south of Trinity, the main cross street south of the RBC Center, which does not provide an easy exit to a major highway.
Now Edwards Mill goes a half-mile farther south, providing a new traffic outlet to N.C. 54 (Chapel Hill Road) and nearby Interstate 40.
"That additional thoroughfare going away from the stadium will make a difference," said Dick Christy, associate athletic director at N.C. State University.
NCSU announced a new egress plan Monday that will use the new road to speed the escape from Carter-Finley parking lots this fall. You can find maps and details at gopack.com.
West Raleigh and Cary commuters will take advantage of the new route, an improvement over more circuitous back-road paths in the area.
Dallas Foster was glad Saturday to drive the Edwards Mill Road extension from his home off N.C. 54 to work at an RBC Center event.
"It's great," Foster said Monday. "Once people discover it, it will help a lot of them."
The road will ease travel for State Fair visitors in October, and for patrons at the three-day Got To Be NC Festival in late May.
"We're glad the project is complete," said Wesley Wyatt, the State Fair manager. In coming years, the State Fair has plans for expanded parking on 120 acres along the southern end of Edwards Mill.
Raleigh voters agreed in a 2000 bond referendum to pay for the $3.5 million project.
A signal plan
Help is on the way for drivers at a dangerous corner near Chapel Hill, where Mount Moriah Road ends at Erwin Road.
Mount Moriah is a busy backdoor for the New Hope Commons shopping area. Hills, curves and a dirt embankment cut visibility for anyone turning on and off the side road.
"Nearly every day, a car gets hit coming onto Erwin from Mount Moriah," said Joy A. Lewis, who lives nearby.
"There are also a ton of rear-end accidents as people stop [on Erwin] to turn ... and drivers coming around the curve and up the hill do not see them in time to stop."
The state Department of Transportation is trying to fix the problem.
Kelvin Jordan, DOT traffic engineer for Orange and four neighboring counties, will recommend a traffic signal and added turn lanes for the crash-prone intersection.
It may take a year or more to work out the details and come up with more than $360,000 for the job, he said.
"In the mean time, we should be looking at other ways to improve safety there now," Jordan said.
That could include more warning signs and possibly a change in the speed limit.
