Overnight Lanes Closures, Detours In Effect Along Raleigh Beltline

The

North Carolina Department of Transportation

will close southbound lanes on Interstate 440 between New Bern Avenue and Poole Road in Wake County starting at 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. All other nights, the work will start at midnight and end at 6 a.m.

The closures are necessary as crews perform bridgework on the interchange for the Knightdale bypass. The construction is expected to be complete by Dec. 19.

Motorists' opinions on the closures is mixed.

"I think it's fine as long as they do it from midnight on," motorist Edie Morgan said. "Most of us don't use the Beltline, so as long as it's late, it's not bad and you know the construction is necessary for the area to grow."

"I'll be coming back home at night, so it does make a difference to me," motorist Marvin Sloan said.

Motorists traveling on I-440 South should use the following signed detour:

Once work is completed on the southbound section, workers will close both lanes of I-440 North. Motorists traveling on I-440 North should use the following signed detour:

Starting at its Beltline connection, the Highway 64 bypass will run 11 miles past Knightdale into the east side of Wendell. It is intended to take the pressure off overburdened Highway 64. Engineers say the road will open in early 2005.