# U.S. Route 15 in North Carolina

U.S. Highway 15 (US 15) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway running from Walterboro, South Carolina, to Painted Post, New York. In the U.S. state of North Carolina, the highway runs for 159 miles (256 km) from the South Carolina state line to the south of Laurinburg to the Virginia state line north of Bullock. US 15 travels in concurrency with US 501 for 106 miles (171 km) between Laurinburg and Durham.

## Route description

From the South Carolina state line, US 15 is in concurrency with US 401 to Laurinburg. Merging with US 501, it becomes what is known as "15-501" ("Fifteen Five-o-one"), a concurrency that extends for 106 miles (171 km) across central North Carolina; US 15 also the dominant partner, using its milemarkers along the route. After Laurinburg, it goes north to Aberdeen, linking briefly with US 1 before continuing to Pinehurst. In Pinehurst, US 15/US 501 goes through a roundabout, then continues north, through Carthage, back to US 1. After another brief concurrency with US 1 through Sanford, it exits off the freeway and goes due north to Pittsboro. After Pittsboro, US 15/US 501 becomes an expressway, connecting the cities of Chapel Hill and Durham; this section of the route is famous because of the two universities it connects: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University. Though the road is a symbol of the separation of the Carolina–Duke rivalry, the North Carolina Department of Transportation has been trying to remedy that by making the route a superstreet for better traffic flow. In Durham, US 15/US 501 upgrades to an urban freeway, allowing for quick access from south Durham to north; the freeway ends merging into Interstate 85 (I-85). At exit 176B (on I-85), US 501 splits off toward Roxboro, while US 15 continues with I-85 toward Oxford.
After Durham, US 15 continues to follow I-85 till exit 186A, where it goes first to Creedmoor, then on into Oxford. After going through downtown Oxford, it continues north, near Mayo Lake, to Clarksville, Virginia.

## History

Established in 1927, it was aligned along North Carolina Highway 75 from the South Carolina state line, through Rockingham, Pinehurst, and Durham, to the Virginia state line.

## Junction list

| County | Location | mi | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
| Scotland | ​ | 0.00 | 0.00 | | US 15 south / US 401 south – Bennettsville | Continuation into South Carolina |
| Scotland | Laurinburg | 5.0 | 8.0 | | US 15 Bus. / US 401 Bus. | |
| Scotland | Laurinburg | 6.0 | 9.7 | | US 501 south / US 74 (I-74) – Rockingham, Lumberton, Myrtle Beach | Southern end of US 501 concurrency; I-74 exit 183 |
| Scotland | Laurinburg | 7.0 | 11.3 | | US 74 Bus. (Church Street) | |
| Scotland | Laurinburg | 9.0 | 14.5 | | US 401 / US 15 Bus. / US 501 Bus. – Fayetteville | Northern end of US 401 concurrency |
| Scotland | ​ | 12.0 | 19.3 | | NC 144 (Old Wire Road) – Wagram, Laurel Hill | |
| Drowning Creek | Drowning Creek | | | | Scotland-Hoke county line | Scotland-Hoke county line |
| Moore | Aberdeen | 31.8 | 51.2 | | NC 211 – Raeford | Southern end of NC 211 concurrency |
| Moore | Aberdeen | 32.0 | 51.5 | | US 1 – Rockingham | Southern end of US 1 concurrency |
| Moore | Aberdeen | 32.2 | 51.8 | | NC 5 – Pinehurst | |
| Moore | Aberdeen | 34.0 | 54.7 | | US 1 – Southern Pines | Northern end of US 1 concurrency |
| Moore | Pinehurst | 38.0 | 61.2 | | NC 2 / NC 211 – Southern Pines, West End | Roundabout; northern end of NC 211 concurrency |
| Moore | ​ | 41.5 | 66.8 | | NC 73 – West End | |
| Moore | Carthage | 45.0 | 72.4 | | NC 22 – Southern Pines | Southern end of NC 22 concurrency |
| Moore | Carthage | 46.0 | 74.0 | | NC 22 (McNeill Street) | Northern end of NC 22 concurrency |
| Moore | Carthage | 48.0 | 77.2 | | NC 24 / NC 27 (Monroe Street) | Southern end of NC 24 / NC 27 concurrency |
| Moore | ​ | 50.0 | 80.5 | | NC 24 / NC 27 – Cameron | Northern end of NC 24 / NC 27 concurrency |
| Lee | ​ | 59.0 | 95.0 | | US 1 – Cameron, Southern Pines | Southern end of US 1 concurrency |
| Lee | Tramway | 61.0 | 98.2 | | NC 78 (Tramway Road) – Cameron | |
| Lee | Sanford | 63.5 | 102.2 | 66 | NC 42 / US 1 Bus. – Asheboro, Fuquay-Varina | South end of freeway; exit numbers follow US 1 |
| Lee | Sanford | 65.0 | 104.6 | 68 | Spring Lane | |
| Lee | Sanford | 65.5 | 105.4 | 69A | NC 87 / US 421 Bus. – Olivia, Pineview, Spout Springs | Southern end of NC 87 concurrency |
| Lee | Sanford | 66.0 | 106.2 | 69B | Burns Drive / Canterbury Road | |
| Lee | Sanford | 66.5 | 107.0 | 70 | US 421 – Fuquay-Varina, Dunn, Greensboro | |
| Lee | Sanford | 67.5 | 108.6 | | US 1 north (Claude E. Pope Memorial Highway north) / US 1 Bus. south – Sanford | Roundabout interchange; north end of freeway section; northern end of US 1 concurrency; US 1 exit 71 |
| Deep River | Deep River | | | Bridge | Bridge | Bridge |
| Chatham | Pittsboro | 81.0 | 130.4 | | NC 87 – Graham, Burlington | Northern end of NC 87 concurrency |
| Chatham | Pittsboro | 82.0 | 132.0 | | US 64 Bus. | |
| Chatham | Pittsboro | 84.0 | 135.2 | | US 64 – Siler City, Raleigh | US 64 exit 383 |
| Orange | Chapel Hill | 97.0 | 156.1 | | NC 54 west (Fordham Boulevard South west) / NC 86 north – Carrboro, UNC Chapel Hill | Interchange; southern end of NC 54 concurrency |
| Orange | Chapel Hill | 99.0 | 159.3 | | NC 54 (Raleigh Road) – Raleigh, UNC Chapel Hill | Cloverleaf interchange; northern end of NC 54 concurrency |
| Orange | Chapel Hill | 102.0 | 164.2 | | Franklin Street | Interchange; southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| Durham | Durham | 103.0 | 165.8 | | I-40 – Greensboro, Raleigh | I-40 exit 270 |
| Durham | Durham | 105.0 | 169.0 | 105A-B | US 15 Bus. / US 501 Bus. (Chapel Hill Boulevard) / Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway – South Square | South end of freeway; signed as exit 105A (US 15 Bus./US 501 Bus.) and 105B (MLK Pkwy.) |
| Durham | Durham | 106.0 | 170.6 | 106 | Cornwallis Road | |
| Durham | Durham | 107.0 | 172.2 | 107 | NC 751 (Cameron Boulevard) | |
| Durham | Durham | 108.0– 108.5 | 173.8– 174.6 | 108A | Morreene Road | Southbound exit and northbound entrance ramps use C/D lanes |
| Durham | Durham | 108.0– 108.5 | 173.8– 174.6 | 108B-C | NC 147 (Durham Freeway) to I-85 south / US 70 west | Access via C/D lanes; signed as exits 108B (south) and 108C (north) |
| Durham | Durham | 108.0– 108.5 | 173.8– 174.6 | 108D | US 70 Bus. (Hillsborough Road) | Northbound exit and southbound entrance ramps use C/D lanes |
| Durham | Durham | 109.0 | 175.4 | — | I-85 south / US 70 west – Burlington, Greensboro | Southern end of I-85 / US 70 concurrency; I-85 exit 174A; southbound left exit and northbound left entrance |
| Durham | Durham | | | 174B | Hillandale Road | Exit numbers follow I-85 |
| Durham | Durham | | | 175 | NC 157 (Guess Road) | To NC School of Science & Math and Duke Homestead |
| Durham | Durham | 111.5 | 179.4 | 176 | US 501 north (Duke Street) / Gregson Street – Northgate | North end of US 501 overlap; signed northbound as exits 176A (Gregson St.) and 176B (US 501) |
| Durham | Durham | | | 177 | US 15 Bus. south / US 501 Bus. (Roxboro Street) / NC 55 east (Avondale Drive) | To North Carolina Central University |
| Durham | Durham | 112.5 | 181.1 | 178 | I-885 south / US 70 east – RDU Airport, Raleigh | Northern end of US 70 concurrency; northern terminus of I-885; US 70 exit 285 |
| Durham | Durham | | | 179 | East Club Boulevard | |
| Durham | Durham | | | 180 | Glenn School Road | |
| Durham | Gorman | | | 182 | Red Mill Road | |
| Durham | Gorman | | | 183 | Redwood Road | |
| Falls Lake | Falls Lake | | | Bridge | Bridge | Bridge |
| Granville | ​ | 122.0 | 196.3 | | I-85 north – Petersburg | Northern end of I-85 concurrency; north end of freeway section; I-85 exit 186A |
| Granville | Creedmoor | 127.0 | 204.4 | | NC 50 / NC 56 – Butner, Wilton, Franklinton | |
| Granville | ​ | 139.0 | 223.7 | | I-85 – Durham, Petersburg | I-85 exit 202 |
| Granville | Oxford | 142.0 | 228.5 | | NC 96 (MLK Jr. Avenue) – Henderson | Southern end of NC 96 concurrency |
| Granville | Oxford | 142.3 | 229.0 | | US 158 Bus. (Williamsboro Street) | Southern end of US 158 Bus. concurrency |
| Granville | Oxford | 143.0 | 230.1 | | NC 96 (Roxboro Road) / US 158 Bus. – Roxboro | Northern terminus of NC 96 / US 158 Bus. concurrency |
| Granville | Oxford | 144.0 | 231.7 | | US 158 (Oxford Loop Road) – Roxboro, Henderson | |
| Granville | ​ | 159.0 | 255.9 | | US 15 north – Clarksville | Continuation into Virginia |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi Concurrency terminus Incomplete access |||||||