Interstate 840 (I-840) is an Interstate Highway in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. It is currently in two sections traversing total in

Guilford County Guilford County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population is 541,299, making it the third-most populous county in North Carolina. The county seat, and largest municipality, is Greensboro. S ...

; when completed, it will form the northern half of the

Greensboro Urban Loop The Greensboro Urban Loop is a Interstate Highway beltway that surrounds Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of ...

Route description

I-840 currently exists in two segments that will eventually form a full northern bypass around

Greensboro Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

. Both sections have a maximum speed limit of . The western segment, a divided six-lane urban freeway, begins at the interchange of

I-40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

I-73 Interstate 73 (I-73) is a north–south Interstate Highway, located within the US state of North Carolina. Currently, there is one continuous section of I-73, totaling , first traversing the U.S. Route 220 (US 220) freeway from ...

/ U.S. Highway 421 (US 421) and goes north for , concurrent with I-73, to an interchange with

Bryan Boulevard Joseph M. Bryan Boulevard (often signed as just Bryan Blvd) is a controlled-access corridor connecting Interstate 73 and Interstate 840 with Benjamin Parkway in Greensboro, North Carolina. The road formerly extended westward along Interstate 73 ...

, where I-73 exits. The freeway turns east and runs for , intersecting with US 220 (Battleground Avenue), Lawndale Drive, and North Elm Street, terminating at the latter road. The eastern segment, a divided four-lane rural freeway, is not signed as I-840 and is concurrent with

I-785 Interstate 785 (I-785) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of North Carolina. , it is completed through eastern Guilford County, through a concurrency with I-840 along the Greensboro Urban Loop. When completed, it will co ...

for its entire length. Instead, supplemental signage indicates it as Future I-840. It begins at

US 29 U.S. Route 29 (US 29) is a north–south United States highway that runs for from Pensacola, Florida to the western suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland in the Southern United States, connecting the Florida Panhandle to the Baltimore-Washington ...

(Ohenry Boulevard) and runs south for , intersecting US 70 before terminating at an interchange with I-40 and

I-85 Interstate 85 (I-85) is a major Interstate Highway in the Southeastern United States. Its southern terminus is at an interchange with I-65 in Montgomery, Alabama; its northern terminus is an interchange with I-95 in Petersburg, Virginia, ...

History

I-840 first appeared in the early 2000s as a proposed routing for the northern half of the Greensboro Urban Loop. In 2002, the first segment opened between US 70 (Burlington Road) and I-40/I-85; however, it was unsigned and designated as SR 3269; by 2006, Future I-840 signage was added at the US 70 interchange. In December 2007, a second segment opened along its routing between I-40/US 421 and Bryan Boulevard and was signed as Future I-73/I-840. In 2010, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) submitted its official request, to both the

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is a standards setting body which publishes specifications, test protocols, and guidelines that are used in highway design and construction throughout the United ...

(AASHTO) and the

Federal Highway Administration The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program ...

(FHWA), to designate the two existing segments of the northern half of the Greensboro Urban Loop as I-840 and the unbuilt portion as Future I-840. AASHTO approved the request on October 29, 2010, followed by FHWA on August 2, 2011. On September 2, 2011, NCDOT certified the route change establishing I-840. Construction on the northern half of the Greensboro Urban Loop resumed in 2013 with the six-lane segment between Bryan Boulevard and Battleground Avenue (US 220), which will be signed as I-840. At a cost of $123 million (equivalent to $ in ), it was expected to be completed in early 2018. This section opened on April 19, 2018, four days ahead of schedule. In late 2014, a segment, between US 29 and US 70, also began construction; however, it was signed as I-785 with I-840 as a hidden designation until the completion of the Loop. This section opened in December 2017. The next section to open was between US 220 and Lawndale Drive, which began construction in October 2016 and opened to traffic on December 30, 2019. The last section of I-840 under construction is the segment between Lawndale Drive and US 29, featuring interchanges with North Elm Street and Yanceyville Street. Construction began in May 2018. On December 23, 2020, part of the section, from Lawndale Drive to North Elm Street, was opened to traffic. The remaining section, from North Elm Street to O. Henry Boulevard is expected to open in Spring of 2023. In October 2022, AASHTO approved the designation of I-840 for the gap section, unifying the route.

Future

Long-term plans call for two additional interchanges along I-840: Fleming–Lewiston Road (SR 2136) and Cone Boulevard (SR 2565). Plans for both interchanges have existed since 2004; however, because both are to be constructed after the I-840's completion, there is no current time table or funding for these two projects at this time.

Exit list

References

External links