North Carolina Highway 147

NC 147 winding around downtown Durham

The route's entire length is a limited access freeway, linking NC 540 in Morrisville with the RTP, Downtown Durham and Interstates 40 and 85. It is a fairly urbanized commuter-route and suffers from peak-traffic during conventional rush hours. Speed limits on the freeway range from 55 mph (89 km/h) to 70 mph (110 km/h).

From NC 540 to I-40, the highway is a toll road, part of the Triangle Expressway. Tolling on this stretch of NC 147 began on January 3, 2012.[2][3]

From I-40 to its northern terminus, the route is known as the Durham Freeway, and serves as the primary artery through the Research Triangle Park and Downtown Durham. The Durham Freeway portion was originally envisioned as an alignment of I-40, though the interstate was built to the south of the city center instead. The Durham Freeway received the NC 147 designation in 1986. From I-40 through the Research Triangle Park, to the Briggs Avenue exit the freeway goes primarily north-south, with wide medians and shoulders and interstate-grade entrance and exit ramps. Entering Downtown Durham past Briggs Avenue, the road turns towards a more southeast-northwest alignment, and narrows considerably, with narrow medians and shoulders, and short entrance and exit ramps, following a depressed road cut to the south of Downtown Durham, passing several major landmarks including the Durham Bulls Athletic Park (visible to the north of the roadway), the Durham Performing Arts Center, and the American Tobacco Historic District. Past Downtown Durham, the freeway passes through Duke University, forming the boundary between East Campus and Central Campus.

Past Duke University, the road reaches its northern terminus in a complex interchange with the U.S. 15-501 Freeway and I-85. Motorists must use U.S. 15-501 for access between I-85 south and NC 147 south, or between NC 147 north and I-85 north. At the actual northern terminus, traffic on NC 147 north merges with I-85 south, while I-85 north traffic can enter NC 147 south using exit 172.

Northbound on Toll NC 147

First toll rates, from northbound NC 540 onto NC 147

Tolls along NC 147 are done by electronic toll collection (ETC) and are enforced by video cameras. Several gantries are located along the route and entrance/exit ramps, where they collect toll via the NC Quick Pass or other interoperable ETC systems. Those that do not participate in the ETC program will receive a bill in the mail and will have 30 days from date on bill before additional fees and civil penalties are applied.[5]

The Durham Freeway began with a 1962 bond referendum.[6] The first section of the road, completed in 1970 around downtown Durham, extended from Chapel Hill Street to Alston Avenue and resulted in the destruction of a portion of the Hayti neighborhood as part of urban renewal,[7] though a DOT engineer said the neighborhood likely would have been torn down anyway. The road was later extended west to Erwin Road and southward to where it meets I-40. In 1986, The freeway was designated as North Carolina Highway 147. The road's other names have included East-West Expressway and the I.L. "Buck" Dean Freeway.[6]

In 1979, planners said many of the city's roads needed widening, and the decision was made to extend the freeway to I-85. The first section in 1982 disrupted the Crest Street neighborhood, but the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) moved 181 houses instead of tearing them down, an action that resulted in a 1987 third-place Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) award for "historic preservation and cultural enhancement".[6] Eventually, the problems that caused the original I-40 extension to I-85 to be delayed were overcome, and NC 147 was extended through the city. Work began in 1993, and the eastbound lanes opened May 21, 1997.[8] The section connecting the road to I-85 opened July 31, 1998.[7]

On September 6, 2011, the south terminus at T.W. Alexander Drive (exit 4) was permanently closed to make way for NC 147's extension to NC 540 in Morrisville; this made I-40 the temporary southern terminus for three months. On December 8, 2011, the southern extension was opened. Dubbed the Triangle Parkway, the 3.4-mile (5.5 km) stretch of road is also part of the Triangle Expressway.[2][3][9][10]

Despite the spur to T.W. Alexander Drive being permanently closed, the pavement was never removed, and the abandoned section still sits just south of NC 147's interchange with I-40. (35.894653°N 78.878140°W / 35.894653; -78.878140) The road markings are also visible.

There are one current and two future projects involving NC 147. The first is the East End Connector which began construction in March 2015.[11] This project, which will build a direct freeway connection designed to interstate standards between the Durham Freeway and north of the U.S. 70/N.C. 98, and which has been delayed many times, is now scheduled to be completed by June 2021.[12] The NCDOT 2020-2029 Final STIP released in September 2019 indicates a project that will widen 3.9 miles of NC 147 to 6 lanes from the East End Connector Project south to I-40 at a cost of $1.8 million is scheduled to start in 2024.[13] A proposed future project is the NC 147 extension to McCrimmon Parkway, in Morrisville, which is scheduled for reprioritization.[14][15]

Interstate 885 (I-885) is the proposed designation traversing between I-40 and I-85/US 15 in Durham and the RTP area. Its first appearance was on August 19, 2014, when the October project letting was released, which included I-885 in the sign plans. NCDOT also listed in the documentation that fabrication of the signs cannot proceed until approval of the route is completed via FHWA; thus this routing is, for now, a proposal.[11][16]

If approved and designated, the Interstate would begin at the I-40/NC 147 interchange (exit 279) then go north running concurrently with NC 147 to the East End Connector, where it will switch to US 70. Continuing north concurrently with US 70, it will end at the I-85/US 15/US 70 interchange (exit 178). The existing exit numbers now on NC 147 and US 70 would be replaced by I-885.

No official request has been submitted to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) or FHWA as this route is currently proposed by NCDOT and is subject to change. The East End Connector is scheduled to be completed by June 2021[17]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to North Carolina Highway 147.

• NCRoads - NC 147
• NC 147 Exit List
• Future I-885 Durham East End Connector