page_title: Interstate 40 in North Carolina
section_title: Route description
hierarchical_section_title: Interstate 40 in North Carolina / Route description
caption_attribution_description: English: I-40 at Exit 66 in Buncombe County; picture won second place in division 13. The image includes sunflowers near the interchange.
context_page_description: Interstate 40 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Barstow, California to Wilmington, North Carolina. In North Carolina, I-40 enters the state along the Pigeon River Gorge, from Tennessee. Crossing the entire state, it connects the cities of Asheville, Statesville, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Burlington, Durham and Raleigh before ending along U.S. Highway 117/North Carolina Highway 132 in Wilmington. The landscapes traversed by I-40 include the Blue Ridge Mountains, foothills of western North Carolina, suburban communities, the urban core of several Piedmont cities, along with eastern North Carolina farmland. At a total of 423.55 miles, it is the longest interstate highway in North Carolina. There are five auxiliary Interstates in the state related to I-40, as well as one business loop which currently runs through Winston-Salem. The route is labeled east-west for the entire route, however the eastern portion follows a much more north-south alignment.
  The freeway bears several names in addition to the I-40 designation. Throughout the state the freeway is known as the Blue Star Memorial Highway a name shared with multiple interstates across the state.
context_section_description: I-40 travels through several diverse regions in North Carolina, including the Great Smoky and Black mountains of Western North Carolina, the rural Foothills, the urban Piedmont, and the farmlands of Eastern North Carolina.  All of I-40 is listed in the National Highway System, a network of roads important to the country's economy, defense and mobility.  I-40 is also designated as a Blue Star Memorial Highway throughout the state.
  I-40 enters North Carolina along the north banks of the Pigeon River, at the foot of Snowbird Mountain.  Winding in parallel with the river, I-40 goes through twin tunnels. When the tunnels opened in 1968 they were the first Interstate tunnels east of Mississippi River. I-40 then proceeds through the Pigeon River Gorge for the next 16 miles (26 km). Just south of exit 7, I-40 uses another tunnel, for eastbound traffic only, through Hurricane Mountain. The westbound lanes use a rock cut through Hurricane Mountain. A short distance after the tunnel is the North Carolina Welcome Center.  Immediately afterwards is Waterville Lake, where there are a few at-grade intersections in this location, used as service access for Walters Dam and the Harmon Den Wildlife Management Area.  I-40 continues toward Asheville. Interstate 40 then merges with US 74 (Great Smoky Mountains Expressway). I-40 and US 74 encounter the Interstate 26, Interstate 240 interchange, sometimes called Malfunction Junction, in the southwestern part of the city. The interchange is the current western terminus of Interstate 240 and the historic terminus of Interstate 26.  Interstate 40 then goes along the south side of Asheville, north of the Biltmore Estate towards Hickory. I-240 and I-40 have another interchange before I-40 leaves the Asheville area. Shortly after it leaves the Asheville area, I-40 encounters a steep grade, Old Fort Mountain, with winding roads that poses a hazard to truck traffic.  There are several runaway truck ramps on this part of the highway. This stretch is about six miles long. Interstate 40 goes south of Black Mountain and Marion, and north of Conover. When I-40 enters Hickory it has a clover interchange with US 321. Interstate 40 then heads south of Hickory and crosses Catawba River. I-40 enters Statesville north of the city. It has major interchanges with US 64 and US 21 before utilizing a clover interchange with Interstate 77. I-40 heads northeast towards Winston-Salem passing Mocksville and Clemmons. When Interstate 40 enters Winston-Salem it has another major interchange this time with the portion of US 421 known as Salem Parkway. US 421 heads north to go through downtown Winston-Salem while I-40 goes just south of the city. Interstate 40 has another clover interchange with I-285/US 52/NC 8. Interstate 74 exit off to the south while I-40 heads back northeast to meet up with US 421. US 421 runs a concurrency with I-40 into Greensboro.
  Interstate 40 enters the Greensboro area at the I-73/US 421/I-840 interchange. This interchange is the east end of the US 421 concurrency with I-40 and is also the planned western terminus of Interstate 840. From there Interstate 40 heads through southwestern Greensboro. Interstate 40 passes Wendover Place and Four Seasons Town Centre before having another large interchange with US 220. 1 mile after the interchange with US 220 US 29/US 70 all merge into I-40/US 220 for one large concurrency. The road is generally a six-lane freeway throughout.
  This 2.5-mile (4.0 km) corridor with concurrent routes ends in the east at the US 29/US 70/US 220/Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard junction. Both the beginning and ending interchanges of this corridor are quite unusual in design and are often operating at above full capacity, leading to frequent traffic jams and traffic incidents.
  I-40 through Greensboro officially bears the name Preddy Boulevard. The nickname "Death Valley" has been given to the area of Interstate 40 where Interstate 40 and Business Interstate 85 splits. The locals have given that area that name because of the high number of deaths due to car crashes in that area. One
caption: Sunflowers along I-40
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