Terry Sanford's 1964 North Carolina Interstate 13 Proposal

In October 2014, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory announced that he supported a plan to build an interstate highway from Raleigh to Norfolk. Basically this would follow US 64 from Raleigh to US 17 in Williamston and follow 17 north into the Tidewater region. NCDOT last year took somewhat of a first step when they petitioned and was granted the Interstate 495 designation from I-440 in Raleigh to I-95 in Rocky Mount. This hopeful interstate corridor has been promoted by the Raleigh Regional Transportation Alliance for sometime as "Interstate 44".

But this isn't the first North Carolina to Norfolk interstate proposal. Researching a long time ago on another item, I came across an article from the Wilmington Star-News that dates back to 1964. Titled, "Sanford Backs New Road Plan," the story talks about then Governor Terry Sanford's endorsement of an interstate corridor from Norfolk to Interstate 95 in Fayetteville. This corridor which pretty much followed US 17 to Williamston and US 13 from Bethel to Fayetteville was proposed by NC State Senator Robert L. Humber of Pitt County. Humber stated that it would be named Interstate 13. The article continues to state that the Division of Highways chairman, Merrill Evans said that he had not endorsed any proposal for a north-south interstate in Eastern North Carolina.

It appears that this one article documented both the birth and death of the Interstate 13 idea in North Carolina.

So was this a good idea, the route basically would have given a direct link from Norfolk to Interstate 95. This possibly could have resulted in larger port in Norfolk and having a negative impact on both of North Carolina's ports in Morehead City and Wilmington. Militarily, it would have linked the numerous military installments around the Hampton Roads Area to Fort Bragg.

Also, would this be a good idea today? Feel free to comment below

Comments

WashuOtaku said…

This is similar to the defunct I-99 that was proposed along the US 17 corridor from South Carolina to Maryland. It's a nice idea, but not needed.

4:00 PM

Anonymous said…

I like the idea of extending the route through Raleigh and down the US 1 freeway, then southwest towards Charlotte. Maybe even continue west to Asheville from there.

10:17 PM

Anonymous said…

Why is there no interstate from Wilmington to Charlotte (to Asheville)??

This seems inexplicable to me.

4:42 PM

The 1915-era Teilman Bridge (the only known Concrete Pony Truss Bridge in California)

The Teilman Bridge is a semi-abandoned structure over Fresno Slough west of Burrell siding near the intersection of Elkhorn Avenue and Elkhorn Grade. This structure is the only known Concrete Pony Truss Bridge constructed in California and was designed by Ingvart Teilman. Teilman's Bridge would open in late 1915 when the Elkhorn Grade was the primary road between Fresno and Coalinga. The structure would be replaced in 1991 but was left standing as it carries pipelines over Fresno Slough. Part 1; the history of the Teilman Bridge In the early Twentieth Century the most direct highway between Fresno and Coalinga followed the Elkhorn Grade. The Elkhorn Grade began at Fresno Slough a short distance west of Burrell siding. From Fresno Slough the Elkhorn Grade followed a generally southwestern course through San Joaquin Valley into the Kettleman Hills towards Coalinga. The Elkhorn Grade can be seen on the 1914 C.F. Weber map of Fresno Coun...

The Dummy Lights of New York

A relic of the early days of motoring, dummy lights were traffic lights that were placed in the middle of a street intersection. In those early days, traffic shuffled through busy intersections with the help of a police officer who stood on top of a pedestal. As technology improved and electric traffic signals became commonplace, they were also originally positioned on a platform at the center of the intersection. Those traffic signals became known as " dummy lights " and were common until traffic lights were moved onto wires and poles that crossed above the intersection. In New York State, only a handful of these dummy lights exist. The dummy lights are found in the Hudson Valley towns of Beacon and Croton-on-Hudson, plus there is an ongoing tug of war in Canajoharie in the Mohawk Valley, where their dummy light has been knocked down and replaced a few times. The dummy light in Canajoharie is currently...

Prunedale Road (Monterey County)

Prunedale Road is a short 2.6-mile-long frontage corridor of US Route 101 in the namesake Monterey County community of Prunedale. Prior to 1932 US Route 101 bypassed Prunedale in favor of the San Juan Grade to the east. Prunedale Road along with nearby Moro Road served as an alternative connecting highway between Salinas and San Juan Bautista. Following the realignment of US Route 101 onto the Prunedale Cutoff the former through route along Prunedale Road would be rendered as a western frontage. Part 1; the history of Prunedale Road Prunedale Road is located in and is named after the Monterey County community of Prunedale. Said community was founded near the junction of San Migeul Canyon, Langley Canyon and Echo Valley. Watsonville settler Charles Langley (namesake of Langley Canyon) was one of the prominent early community settlers. The Prunedale Post Office would open for the first time in 1894 but would close by 1908. Early agricu...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog