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New I-540 Section To Offer Commuters More Options

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WAKE COUNTY, N.C. — Roads in eastern Wake County are in the middle of a huge facelift. The Outer Loop will soon stretch from Capital Boulevard to Highway 64 near Knightdale. The 64 Bypass will soon give commuters an alternative to stop and go from the Beltline to Wendell.

A path planned for the new section of I-540 runs right by Johnny Hill's house on Old Milburnie Road. The old farmhouse where he was born 56 years ago has already been bulldozed. The house he built 15 years ago will be spared, but the new road will run right by an old wishing well in his yard.

"We'll just have to see what happens. It's not going to be a quiet peaceful place like I had pictured," he said.

David Lollar said the existing portion of I-540 is already a high octane route for north Raleigh commuters headed for Research Triangle Park.

"Instead of 30 to 45 minutes to get to work in standstill, impatient traffic, they're able to get there in 15 minutes," he said.

I-540 will run from Capital Boulevard to Highway 64 near Knightdale. I-540 will then connect to the Highway 64 Bypass. That new road starts at the Beltline and will merge with Highway 64 west of Wendell. The state Department of Transportation said that section of I-540 from should be finished by November 2005. The 64 Bypass should be ready a few months before that.

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