New ramp, new stop light, new traffic pattern at Wade Avenue interchange. What to know
A new ramp will open this weekend at the Wade Avenue interchange with Interstate 440, creating a new traffic pattern that might take drivers a bit of getting used to.
The ramp carries drivers from eastbound I-440, the Raleigh Beltline, onto westbound Wade. The existing loop ramp is set to close at midnight Friday, and the N.C. Department of Transportation expects to open the new one Saturday morning, if weather cooperates.
There is a traffic light where the new ramp meets Wade Avenue. That will be a change for drivers who’ve grown accustomed to crossing the Beltline on Wade toward PNC Arena and Cary without stopping.
The timing of the new light will take into account traffic on the ramp and along Wade Avenue, according to NCDOT. It will also be coordinated with the signal at the intersection of Wade and Ridge Road just to the east, to try to prevent backups.
With the new ramp, all traffic from eastbound I-440 going to Wade Avenue will exit in the same place. The traffic will then split, with drivers headed west on Wade taking a new bridge up to the traffic light, while eastbound drivers will meet Wade where they do now.
The interchange at Wade is part of an effort to widen a four-mile stretch of the Beltline from Wade to I-40 near Cary, from four lanes to six. The project includes reconfiguring and rebuilding interchanges at Wade, Hillsborough Street, Western Boulevard and Jones Franklin Road.
The work began in 2019 and was supposed to be finished two years ago. NCDOT says several factors have contributed to the delays, including the COVID-19 pandemic and shortages of workers and materials.
The entire project should be “substantially finished by the end of the year,” said NCDOT spokeswoman Kim Deaner, though the department’s website lists the completion date as sometime in 2025.
The widening of I-440 coincides with the building of an underpass to carry Blue Ridge Road under Hillsborough Street and the N.C. Railroad tracks near the N.C. State Fairgrounds. NCDOT hopes to have the Blue Ridge Road underpass open to traffic in time for the 2025 State Fair.
