Widening project will make stretch of Raleigh's Tryon Road safer

Suggested by residents who live near the Raleigh Golf Association, the construction will reduce the number of curves on Tryon Road between the golf course and Wilmington Street by building a new bridge over the railroad tracks that go through the area.

The bridge will connect to an existing road in the Renaissance Park neighborhood, effectively eliminating two sharp curves that have been the cause of several wrecks. 

Neighbors say the improvements will make the road safer for golfers and drivers. Anthony McLeod, who lives nearby and uses Tryon Road often, said the road is in desperate need of a face lift.

"Being a two-lane road, it's dangerous at times," McLeod said.

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Dennis Jernigan, an N.C. Department of Transportation engineer, said the project will go a long way toward making Tryon Road – one of the busier roads in southern Wake County – much safer.

"There (is) a higher incidence of crashes out here than there are compared to similar sections across the state," Jernigan said. "Tryon Road will be much straighter. There will be a few curves in there, but they will be much gentler than the ones in place now."

No lanes will be closed during the project, officials said, and the new section of road will be four lanes.

Golfers who frequent RGA will also benefit from the project, as a new tunnel will allow them to travel underneath Tryon Road. Drivers trying to visit the SPCA of Wake County – off of Withers Road – and other locations near the old stretch of road will be able to access Old Tryon Road once the work is complete.

Work on the project will begin in February and could take two years to complete.

"I think it's going to make the area safer," McLeod said. "It's a good thing."

The future widening project will widen Tryon Road to a four-lane, median-divided section with bike lanes, sidewalks and street lights from Lake Wheeler Road to Par Drive.