page_title: Interstate 26 in North Carolina
section_title: Route description
hierarchical_section_title: Interstate 26 in North Carolina / Route description
caption_attribution_description: English: I-26 from Skyuka Road near Columbus in Polk County, North Carolina.
context_page_description: Interstate 26 in North Carolina runs through the Western part of the state, from the Tennessee border to the South Carolina border, following the Appalachian Mountains. It is part of the larger I-26, a regional interstate that runs from Kingsport, Tennessee to in Charleston, South Carolina. I-26 is mostly four lanes through North Carolina with few exceptions. Though signed with east-west cardinal directions, in North Carolina and Tennessee, the route goes nearly north-south, with the northern direction labeled "West" and vice versa.
  I-26's original western terminus was I-40/I-240 in Asheville. Between 2003 and 2005, the road was extended further north into Tennessee. Along the segment from Mars Hill to Asheville there are future I-26 signs as some parts of the road have not yet been upgraded to Interstate Highway standards.
context_section_description: I-26, in concurrency with US 23, enters the state at Sams Gap (elevation 3,760 feet (1,150 m)), from Tennessee.  In the first 9 miles (14 km), designated as a scenic byway, it features mostly six travel lanes and three runaway truck ramps going eastbound.  The freeway is also parallels US 23A, which was the original route before 2006.  At exit 13, I-26 ends and Future I-26 begins; US 19 also joins from Burnsville.
  At Weaverville, Future I-26 merges with US 25/US 70, coming from Marshall; however, US 25 soon disembarks in Woodfin and continues south along Merrimon Avenue.  Future I-26 enters Asheville, while parallel with the French Broad River, and merges with westbound I-240/US 74A, with US 19/US 23; US 70 ends its concurrency by going eastbound I-240/US 74A instead and an additional exit at the major interchange provides access to downtown Asheville via Patton Avenue. It is signed I-26 proper again without future designation after merging with I-240.
  Crossing the French Broad River along Capt. Jeff Bowen Bridge (originally Smokey Park Highway Bridge before 2012), I-26/I-240 promptly exits with two-lanes to the right (same for both directions) while US 19/US 23/US 74A continue along Patton Avenue (exit 3).  The interchange also features warning lights for "stopped traffic ahead", a common condition during rush hour.  Between Patton Avenue (exit 3) and Haywood Road (exit 2), I-26/I-240 shares hidden concurrency with US 19 Bus./US 23 Bus.
  At the major interchange with I-40, sometimes called Malfunction Junction, I-240 ends, with new concurrency of I-26 with US 74.  The interchange features left exit and entrances; while travelers along eastbound I-26/westbound I-240, access to eastbound I-40 is via NC 191 (Brevard Road - exit 1).  Westbound I-40/US 74 continues on to Canton and Knoxville, eastbound I-40 provides access to nearby Biltmore Estate and further on to Hickory.
  Near mile marker 36, the Blue Ridge Parkway crosses over I-26 with a 75.1-foot (22.9 m) clearance; access to the Blue Ridge Parkway is via NC 191 (exit 33).
  In Fletcher, I-26 goes by the Asheville Regional Airport and accesses NC 280 to Brevard and Mills River (exit 40); 3.2 miles (5.1 km) later, US 25 rejoins (exit 44).  In Hendersonville, it connects with US 64, which connect travelers to nearby Chimney Rock, Lake Lure and Brevard.  Between mile markers 53 and 54, I-26 crosses the Eastern Continental Divide (elevation 2,130 feet (650 m)), at the Crest Road overpass (SR 1803).  Near East Flat Rock, US 25 separates again towards Greenville; while I-26 goes southeasterly down along Dodging Hill and crosses over the Green River along Peter Guice Memorial Bridge, with a clearance of 235-foot (72 m) from the river, making it the highest bridge in North Carolina.
  At Howard Gap (elevation around 1,900 feet (580 m)), an additional truck lane is available on westbound I-26 for 3 miles (4.8 km).  In Columbus, US 74 ends concurrency at exit 67, continuing east towards Shelby.  At 71.4 miles (114.9 km) (combining I-26 and Future I-26), I-26 crosses the state line and into South Carolina.
  I-26 also make up part of Corridor B in the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS).  Corridor B connects I-40, in Asheville, North Carolina, with US 23, near Lucasville, Ohio, it overlaps 9 miles (14 km) of I-26 and 22 miles (35 km) of Future I-26.  ADHS provides additional funds, as authorized by the U.S. Congress, which have enabled I-26 to benefit from the successive improvements and widening along its routing within the corridor.  The white-on-blue banner "Appalachian Highway" is used to mark the ADHS corridor.
  I-26 overlaps with one state scenic byway simply known as the "I-26 Scenic Byway."  Located from the Tennessee state line to Exit 9 (US 19/US 23A), near Mars Hill.  The byway is known for its unspoiled views of the North Carolina Mountains.
caption: I-26 in Polk County looking over Skyuka Mountain
exif: {"Image Make": "TBD", "Image Model": "TBD", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Exif Software Version 1.24", "Image DateTime": "2007:02:08 17:01:00", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "186", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "478", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "24229", "Thumbnail YCbCrPositioning": "0", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0210", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": ":  :     :  :", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0101", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1272", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1908", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "0", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "0", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "0"}