Old section of I-95 north of Fayetteville getting a makeover
A decades-old section of Interstate 95 north of Fayetteville will get a big overhaul later this year thanks to a federal grant.
According to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, a 15-mile stretch of I-95 from Exit 56 in Eastover to Exit 71 near Dunn will be widened from four lanes to eight. Officials say the work is much needed, as sections of that stretch were built about 60 years ago.
According to the NCDOT, almost every interchange and bridge along the route will be rebuilt to accommodate modern design standards like higher overpasses, wider paved shoulders and longer ramps to enter the freeway.
Crews will replace 11 bridges in all, including I-95 over the Black River.
Roundabouts will be added at some interchanges, and a new ramp will connect I-95 North to NC-295 South. Work is expected to begin by the end of 2019 and is expected to take about four years to complete.
Although the shoulders will be narrowed during construction, four travel lanes will be maintained during the life of the project, officials said. There will be only brief overnight closures.
The construction is made possible by a $147 million federal grant provided to the NCDOT last year that, among I-95 widening, will pay for upgrading sections of U.S. Highway 70 to future Interstate 42 in eastern North Carolina and funding the installation of 300 miles of fiber optic cable along both highways.
S.T. Wooten, a construction and materials company from, won the $404 million contract to complete the widening. The estimated cost of the project is $708.9 million, according to the NCDOT. The rest of the money for the contract will come from highway trust funds.
Looking forward, the state plans to award a contract next summer to begin upgrading another stretch of I-95 from Dunn to Benson.
