More than 1,700 projects are included in the N.C. Department of Transportation’s final draft of its 2020-2029 Statewide 10-Year Transportation Plan. The draft STIP includes projects across all transportation modes and in every county in the state.
The complete draft STIP list can be found on the NCDOT website.
In Division 13, which includes Buncombe, Burke, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Rutherford and Yancey counties, there are 107 projects. Among the improvements planned are the following:
• Modernizing North Louisiana from Patton Avenue to Emma Road in Buncombe County with right of way acquisition starting in fiscal year 2025 and construction in 2026;
• Improving the intersection of U.S. 70 and U.S. 64 in Burke County with right of way acquisition starting in fiscal year 2024 and construction in fiscal year 2025;
• Improving the intersection of U.S. 221 with Thunder Road and Coxe Road in Rutherford County with right of way acquisition starting in fiscal year 2024 and construction in 2025;
• Upgrading U.S. 25/70 from Tillery Branch Road to Monticello Road in Madison County with right of way acquisition starting in fiscal year 2029.
“The 2020-29 STIP shows the desire for improved and safer transportation connections in the Asheville, Buncombe and the surrounding counties,” Division 13 Engineer Mark Gibbs said. “By working closely with our transportation partners and local governments, we have built a wide-ranging list of projects that will improve the lives of our citizens and visitors.”
The department’s 10-year transportation plan is updated every two years. Projects scheduled in the first six years of the plan are considered committed and are not re-evaluated when a new plan is developed. Projects in the final four years of each plan are prioritized again based on technical data, as well as input from local officials and residents.
The overall statewide list includes 1,319 highway projects, 86 aviation, 234 bike and pedestrian, six ferry, 23 public transit and 50 rail projects selected on statewide, regional and division levels. The projects were prioritized based on technical data as well as input from local officials and residents.
Included in the plan are more than 200 projects worth about $2.5 billion that are scheduled to be awarded in fiscal year 2019-2020.
The draft plan includes 385 changes in highway projects from the initial draft STIP. Some are new projects, while others have had schedule adjustments.
The Board of Transportation is expected to consider final approval of the draft plan at its September meeting.
More information about the STIP and how transportation projects are funded is available on the NCDOT website.