Trying to figure out what happened to Greensboro's Murrow Blvd. freeway plans

Sometimes you never know when and how you will discover a new piece of road history. Yesterday, our family went to the Greensboro (NC) Children's Museum and on the way there and back I noticed what appeared to be a stub end to a divided highway. I wasn't aware of this prior so of course I did some quick research.

Murrow Boulevard is a divided highway that runs along along the east side of Greensboro's Downtown Core and turns northeast to split into two one way streets - Fisher and Smith. Murrow, Fisher, Smith, along with Edgeworth and Spring Streets form a downtown loop similar to the one in Durham. But there appears to have been more planned for Murrow Blvd and the area south of Downtown Greensboro.


The end of Murrow Blvd. in Greensboro suggests that there was more planned for the highway.

Murrow Blvd. - which is named after Edward R. Murrow - has an awkward end where it meets Gate City Boulevard (formerly NC 6 and Lee St.). Just after the Gorrell Street overpass (seen above), the divided highway jogs to the right - the median widens - and Murrow ends at a traffic light. If you are wanting to go North on Murrow Blvd. from Gate City, you will notice that the one lane road immediately becomes three lanes and there is a stub end showing that the road was supposed to continue south of Gate City.

In fact, if you look at aerial photographs of Greensboro - as early as 1968 - you'll see what appears to be two items, grading for an overpass over then Lee St. and what looks like a ramp what is now Martin Luther King Blvd. to Gate City. A 3D Google Earth Image is available here. The plan was to build a freeway from this point and connect to the Coliseum Area. Basically this highway would run south and parallel to what is Gate City Blvd. A general plan of the highway is shown below.

Basic Murrow Blvd. Expressway Plan (otherstream.com)

The plan pretty much fizzled and it appears that concerns about dividing the city into two sections (poorer areas to the south / more affluent to the north) was the driving force behind the plans falling through. That's all that is pretty much known (at least on the internet) about the Murrow Blvd. Extension. If you have any additional information, drop me a line or leave a comment.

Sources:
"In Which I Nag About Greensboro History" ---Otherstream.com

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