As motorists in Gaston County face continued disruptions, the N.C. Department of Transportation has announced ongoing lane closures on I-85 to make way for an expansive widening project slated for the near future. The closures are part of a geotechnical investigation, a crucial step ahead of the actual construction, to unearth the mysteries that lie beneath the current roadway. The intent is to gather data instrumental in the design of an expanded bridge crossing the South Fork Catawba River just north of McAdenville.
Travelers can expect the right lane of I-85 South near the bridge to be inaccessible starting just after midnight until the early hours of 5 a.m. this Friday morning. According to the NCDOT's press release, these closures will not just be a one-night affair but will persist from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly through the end of the month, with the completion hinging on the contractor's pace.
In a move that anticipates greater traffic and the quest for improved mobility, Lane Construction Corp. has been tapped with a $337 million contract for the project's first segment. Upgrades will see an additional lane in both northbound and southbound directions stretching from N.C. 7 (Exit 23) to N.C. 273 (Exit 27), alongside a broad effort to refurbish or replace existing bridges and tweak interchanges for better operational flow.
Those planning to navigate these roads will have to wait a little longer for the full ease that the project promises. The segment under discussion is still in the design phase, with "construction likely to begin in summer 2026," as mentioned in the initial report.
