U.S. Route 258 (North Carolina)

U.S. Route 258 (US 258) is a spur of US 58 in the U.S. states of North Carolina and Virginia. The U.S. Highway runs from US 17 Business and NC 24 Business in Jacksonville, North Carolina north to Virginia State Route 143 (SR 143) at Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia. In North Carolina, US 258 connects Jacksonville with the Inner Banks communities of Kinston, Snow Hill, Farmville, Tarboro, and Murfreesboro. The U.S. Highway continues through the Virginia city of Franklin, where the highway intersects US 58, and the town of Smithfield on its way to the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. US 258 crosses the James River on the James River Bridge and follows Mercury Boulevard through Newport News and Hampton.

Route description

Jacksonville to Kinston

US 258 begins at a directional intersection with US 17 Business and NC 24 Business in Jacksonville. The business routes head east together as Marine Boulevard toward downtown Jacksonville; US 17 Business heads southwest along Wilmington Highway to meet up with US 17 along the freeway bypass of Jacksonville that also carries NC 24 and leads to Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. US 258 and NC 24 Business run concurrently along Richlands Highway, a five-lane road with center turn lane, west to the western terminus of the freeway, a four-way intersection at which NC 24 begins to run concurrently with US 258; the west leg of the intersection is NC 53 (Burgaw Highway). The U.S. Highway and state highway parallel the New River through a junction with the southern end of NC 111 (Lake Catherine Road) to just south of Richlands, where the highways cross the river and pass through that town. The highways head west out of the town as Kinston Highway. West of Richlands NC 24 continues west as five-lane Beulaville Highway toward Beulaville while US 258 curves north along Kinston Highway, which reduces to two lanes.

US 258 briefly passes through Jones County, where the highway intersects NC 41 at Hargetts Crossroads before entering Lenoir County. The U.S. Highway crosses the Trent River and passes through Woodington prior to its junction with US 70 and NC 58 (New Bern Road) just south of the Neuse River in Kinston. The roadway continues straight as Queen Street, which carries NC 58, US 70 Business, and US 258 Business across the river into downtown Kinston. US 258 runs concurrently northwest along the US 70 four-lane divided highway; the two U.S. Highways have an intersection with NC 11 and NC 55 (Old Pink Hill Road) before crossing the river and meeting the other end of the highways' business routes, which follow Vernon Avenue. US 258 and US 70 follow Vernon Avenue a short distance west to where US 258 turns north. The U.S. Highway has an at-grade crossing with the North Carolina Railroad and meets the western end of NC 148 (C.F. Harvey Parkway), which serves Kinston Regional Jetport and the North Carolina Global TransPark.

Kinston to Tarboro

US 258 crosses Wheat Swamp into Greene County. The U.S. Highway intersects NC 58 (Kingold Boulevard) again south of Snow Hill, which the highway enters along 2nd Street. In the center of town, US 258 turns onto Greene Street and crosses Contentnea Creek, then has a four-way intersection with US 13, NC 91, and NC 903. The roadway continues north as NC 91; US 258 begins to run northeast concurrently with US 13 and NC 903. NC 903 diverges from the two U.S. Highways west of Maury; the U.S. Highways intersect NC 123 in the hamlet of Lizzie. US 258 and US 13 diverge north of Sandy Run. US 258 crosses Middle Swamp into Pitt County and intersects US 264 Alternate south of Farmville. US 258 and US 264 Alternate briefly run together east for before US 258 heads north again. US 258 comes to a diamond interchange with I-587 and US 264 (John P. East Memorial Highway) and Wesley Chapel Road northeast of the center of Farmville. US 258 joins the I-587 and US 264 freeway west for about before exiting at another diamond interchange northwest of town. The former routing of the highway through Farmville is now U.S. Route 258 Business.

US 258 intersects NC 222 (Wilson Street) in Fountain before entering Edgecombe County. The U.S. Highway intersects NC 124 in Crisp and NC 42 and NC 43 east of Pinetops, then parallels the Tar River to Tarboro. South of downtown Tarboro, the U.S. Highway has a partial cloverleaf interchange with the US 64 freeway and Western Boulevard, which features US 64 Alternate, NC 111, and NC 122. US 258 and the two state highways cross the Tar River on the freeway, then exit US 64 onto Mutual Boulevard at a partial interchange on the east side of the river in Princeville. There is no access from southbound US 258 to eastbound US 64 or from westbound US 64 to northbound US 258. The missing movements are provided via NC 33, which the three highways intersect in the center of town. A short distance to the east, NC 111 diverges on Greenwood Boulevard. US 258 and NC 122 parallel the river north before the two routes diverge northeast of Tarboro.

Tarboro to Franklin

US 258 intersects NC 97 in the hamlet of Lawrence before the highway enters Halifax County. The U.S. Highway crosses Deep Creek before becoming the Main Street of Scotland Neck. US 258 becomes concurrent with NC 125 at the south edge of the town and with NC 903, which enters from the east on 9th Street, in the center of town. NC 125 and NC 903 exit town to the west on 12th Street. US 258 has a junction with NC 561 north of Scotland Neck; the two highways cross the Roanoke River into Northampton County. The two highways meet the northern end of NC 308 just before entering Rich Square as Main Street. In the center of Rich Square, US 258 intersects NC 305 (Jackson Street), which exits town to the east with NC 561. The U.S. Highway has an at-grade crossing of the North Carolina and Virginia Railroad southwest of Woodland, where the highway, marked as Main Street, has a concurrency with NC 35 between Spruce Street and Linden Street.

North of Woodland, US 258 crosses Potecasi Creek and parallels the Northampton–Hertford county line north to Murfreesboro. The U.S. Highway joins US 158 east into Hertford County on its four-lane divided southern bypass of the town while the roadway continues straight as US 158 Business (Main Street). Southeast of the town, US 258 leaves US 158 and joins NC 11 on Beechwood Boulevard, which the two highways follow to NC 11's northern terminus at US 158 Business. US 258 leaves Murfreesboro on Virginia Boulevard, which crosses the Meherrin River and heads northeast through Como to the state line, where the highway enters Southampton County, Virginia. The U.S. Highway, now named Smiths Ferry Road, uses the General Vaughan Bridge to cross the Nottoway River a short distance north of its confluence with the Blackwater River to form the Chowan River