Interstate 26

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Interstate 26
Main route of the Interstate Highway System
Length: 349 mi[1] (562 km)
West end: US 11W/US 23/TN 1/TN 137 in Kingsport, TN
Major
junctions:		 I-81 in Kingsport, TN
I-40 in Asheville, NC
I-85 near Spartanburg, SC
I-20 near Columbia, SC
I-77 in Cayce, SC
I-95 near Rosinville, SC
East end: US 17 in Charleston, SC

Interstate 26 (abbreviated I-26) is a nominally east/west (but physically more south/north) main route of the Interstate Highway System in the Southeastern United States. I-26 runs from the junction of U.S. Route 11W and U.S. Route 23 in Kingsport, Tennessee, generally south and southeast to U.S. Route 17 in Charleston, South Carolina.[2] The portion from Mars Hill, North Carolina, east (compass south) to Interstate 240 in Asheville, North Carolina, is signed as FUTURE I-26 because it does not yet meet Interstate Highway standards; a short realignment is also planned in Asheville.

Prior to August 5, 2003, the western terminus was at Interstate 40 on the southwest side of Asheville, where it continued on to make a clockwise loop around downtown as Interstate 240. At that time, it was decided to extend the route west of Asheville into Tennessee. Thus the final section of freeway in North Carolina, from Mars Hill north to the Tennessee state line, replaced the old two-lane U.S. Route 23. I-26 was extended into Tennessee on the US 23 freeway, taking over approximately half of the former Interstate 181 from U.S. Route 321/State Route 67 in Johnson City, to Interstate 81 south of Kingsport. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) denied an extension of I-26 along the remainder of I-181 to Kingsport, since it would give a main interstate route a stub end (not connecting to another interstate). The extension was finally achieved by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, signed into law August 10, 2005. Thus the I-26 designation now ends about two miles (3 km) south of the Virginia state line, while the freeway itself continues to the state line as US 23.

North of Kingsport, US 23 continues north to Portsmouth, Ohio, as Corridor B of the Appalachian Development Highway System, and beyond to Columbus, as Corridor C. In conjunction with the Columbus-Toledo corridor formed by Interstate 75, U.S. 23, and State Route 15, I-26 forms part of a mostly high-speed four-lane highway from the Great Lakes to the Southeast. There are no plans for further I-26 extensions into Virginia, Kentucky and farther north.

Contents

[edit] Route description

Lengths
mi km
TN 55 89
NC 71 114
SC 220.95 355.58
Total 347 558
Major cities
Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs

I-26 is a diagonal interstate, running northwest/southeast; most other routes in the area are odd numbers running northeast/southwest. The extension past Asheville is mainly north/south. Where I-26 crosses the French Broad River in Asheville at the Smoky Park Bridge, the highway runs in opposite directions from its designations. (I-26 West actually goes east. I-26 is coterminous with I-240, so that I-240 East and I-26 West are the same route.) When the extension was made in 2003, the exit numbers in North Carolina were increased by 31 to reflect the new mileage. The part that it shares with I-240 has not had the numbers changed yet, although most signs now indicate I-26 instead of I-240.

I-26 is signed with an extra FUTURE sign above (and in the same style as) the EAST and WEST signs from Asheville north to Mars Hill, because the older U.S. Route 23 freeway does not meet interstate standards. Shoulders remain substandard or nonexistent along short sections of the route, and a realignment is planned in Asheville to bypass some tight interchanges.

Exit numbers in Tennessee were formerly numbered "backwards", increasing from "east" (physically south) to "west" (physically north), because the road was formerly Interstate 181 & U.S. Route 23, two north/south roads. Although this is consistent with the south-to-north numbering that drivers expect, this exit numbering was changed to be consistent with the rest of the east-to-west-numbered highway in March 2007 on all 284 signs along the I-26 route; the remaining I-181 signs north of I-81 were also replaced by I-26 signs at that time. The old exit numbers will be displayed on signs with the new ones until March 2009.

Beginning in the city of Charleston, South Carolina, I-26 travels northwest over mostly flat plains with little urbanization (and few traffic jams) past North Charleston. After the junction with Interstate 95 just inside of Orangeburg County, the terrain becomes somewhat hilly. Orangeburg is the first major stop outside Charleston with several exits bearing its name. Between Orangeburg and the junction with Interstate 77 just outside of Cayce the road goes up and down a few very long hills averaging about 100 feet or 30 meters high. After I-77 is the Columbia metropolitan area to which I-26 offers good shopping and dining access. The metropolitan area ends after exit 101, past which the terrain becomes hilly once again. The next major city is Spartanburg, where I-26 junctions the Interstate 85 corridor, popular for international business.

I-26 in Polk County, NC
I-26 in Polk County, NC

About 20 miles after Spartanburg one reaches the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. After crossing the North Carolina border into Polk County, I-26 intersects U.S. Route 74, a limited-access freeway near Columbus and heads up a 6% grade for the next three miles through Howard Gap. Then it passes over the highest bridge in North Carolina, the Peter Guice Memorial Bridge, 225 feet or nearly 70 meters above Green River between Saluda and Flat Rock in Henderson County and crosses the Eastern Continental Divide at an elevation of 2130 feet or 650 meters, having climbed from around 1100 feet or 335 meters at the U.S. 74 interchange. The land flattens substantially after entering the French Broad River basin from Flat Rock to Hendersonville, Fletcher and Arden.

For all practical purposes, I-26 ends at the junction with I-40 in Asheville; however the Future I-26 may be brought up to Interstate standards very soon. Between Mars Hill and the Tennessee state line, the new section of Interstate is a designated North Carolina Scenic Highway. It climbs from 2200 feet or 670 meters in elevation to 3800 feet or 1158 meters at Sam's Gap (the state line); two major climbing sections exist along this stretch along with major cuts through the mountains and the 220-foot (67m) Laurel Creek Gorge Bridge. The North Carolina welcome center, encountered when traveling eastbound, has an overlook with views of the highest mountain range in the Appalachians, the Black Mountains. The Appalachian Trail passes under the Interstate at Sam's Gap as well.

[edit] Exit list

[edit] Tennessee

Note that there were also previous "old" numbers from I-126 not listed here.

County Location Mile Exit # Destinations Notes
Old New
Sullivan Kingsport US 23 north – Gate City Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
57 SR-36 south (Lynn Garden Drive) Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
55 1 US-11W (West Stone Drive, SR-1) West end of I-26; south end of SR-137
Bridge over the Holston River
52 3 Meadowview Parkway
51 4 SR-93 (Wilcox Drive, SR-126) Signed as exits 4A (south) and 4B (north) eastbound
49 6 SR-347 (Rock Springs Road)
46 8 I-81 – Knoxville, Bristol Signed as exits 8A (south) and 8B (north)
45 10 Eastern Star Road
Washington Johnson City 42 13 SR-75 (Suncrest Drive, Bobby Hicks Highway) – Gray
38 17 SR-354 (Boones Creek Road) – Jonesborough
36 19 SR-381 (State of Franklin Road) – Bristol
35 20 US-11E / US-19W north (Roan Street, SR-34/SR-36 north) West end of US-19W/SR-36 overlap; signed as exits 20A (south) and 20B (north) westbound
33 22 SR-400 (Unaka Avenue, Watauga Avenue)
32 23 SR-91 (Market Street, Main Street)
31 24 US-321 / SR-67 – Elizabethton
Carter 28 27 SR-359 north (Okolona Road)
Unicoi Unicoi 23 32 SR-173 (Unicoi Road)
21 34 Tinker Road
Erwin 19 36 Main Street - Erwin
18 37 SR-81 / SR-107 – Erwin, Jonesborough
15 40 Jackson-Love Highway - Erwin
12 43 US-19W south (Temple Hill Road, SR-36 south) to SR-352 East end of US-19W/SR-36 overlap
9 46 Clear Branch Road
5 50 Flag Pond Road

[edit] North Carolina

County Location Exit # Destinations Notes
Old New
Madison 3
US 23 Alt. – Wolf Laurel
9 US 19 north – Burnsville, Spruce Pine West end of US 19 overlap
Mars Hill 11 NC 213 – Mars Hill, Marshall
Temporary east end of I-26 at NC 213
Buncombe 13 Forks of Ivy
15 NC 197 – Jupiter, Barnardsville
17 Flat Creek
Weaverville 18
US 19 Bus. south / Monticello Road – Weaverville
19 US 25 north / US 70 west – Marshall, Weaverville West end of US 25/US 70 overlap; signed as exits 25A (north/west) and 25B (Weaverville) westbound
21 New Stock Road - Weaverville
Woodfin 23 Merrimon Avenue (US 25 south) - North Asheville, New Bridge East end of US 25 overlap
24 Elk Mountain Road - Woodfin
Asheville 25 NC 251 – University of North Carolina-Asheville
Hill Street Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
I-240 east / US 70 east (US 74 Alt. east) East end of US 70 overlap; west end of I-240/US 74 Alt. overlap
Temporary west end of I-26; west end of I-240 overlap
4B Patton Avenue - Downtown Asheville
3B Westgate, Holiday Inn Drive
3A US 19 south / US 23 south (US 74 Alt. west) East end of US 19/US 23/US 74 Alt. overlap; west end of US 19 Bus./US 23 Bus. overlap
2
US 19 Bus. south / US 23 Bus. south – West Asheville		 U.S. 19 Business and U.S. 23 Business join westbound and leave eastbound.
1C Amboy Road Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
1B NC 191 (Brevard Road) to I-40 east
East end of I-240 overlap at I-40
1B 32B I-40 west / US 74 – Canton, Knoxville West end of US 74 overlap; signed as exit 1A eastbound
1A 32A I-40 east – Hickory Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
2 33 NC 191 / Blue Ridge Parkway
6 37 NC 146 – Skyland
9 40 NC 280 – Asheville Regional Airport, Arden
Henderson 13 44
US 25 north / US 25 Bus. south – Fletcher, Mountain Home		 West end of US 25 overlap
Hendersonville 18 49 US 64 – Hendersonville, Bat Cave Signed as exits 49A (east) and 49B (west)
22 53 Upward Road - Hendersonville
23 54 US 25 south to US 176 / NC 225 - Greenville East end of US 25 overlap
Peter Guice Memorial Bridge over the Green River
Polk 28 59 Saluda
Columbus 36 67 US 74 east / NC 108 – Columbus, Rutherfordton, Tryon East end of US 74 overlap

[edit] South Carolina

County Location # Destinations Notes
Spartanburg 1 SC 14 – Landrum
5 SC 11 – Campobello, Chesnee
10 SC 292 – Inman
15 US 176 – Inman, Spartanburg
16 John Dodd Road - Wellford
17 New Cut Road - Sigsbee
18 I-85 – Greenville, Charlotte Signed as exits 18A (south) and 18B (north)
19 I-85 Bus. – Spartanburg Signed as exits 19A (south) and 19B (north)
21 US 29 – Greer, Spartanburg Signed as exits 21A (south) and 21B (north)
22 SC 296 (Reidville Road) – Roebuck, Spartanburg
28 US 221 – Spartanburg, Moore, Woodruff
35 Road 50 - Woodruff
38 SC 146 – Cross Anchor, Woodruff
41 SC 92 – Enoree
44 SC 49 – Laurens, Cross Anchor, Union
Bridge over the Enoree River
Laurens
51 I-385 – Laurens, Greenville Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
52 SC 56 – Cross Anchor, Clinton
54 SC 72 – Clinton, Whitmire
60 SC 66 – Joanna, Whitmire
Newberry 66 Road 32 - Jalapa
72 SC 121 – Newberry, Whitmire, Union
74 SC 34 – Newberry, Winnsboro
76 SC 219 – Newberry, Pomaria
82 SC 773 – Prosperity, Pomaria
85 SC 202 – Pomaria, Little Mountain
Lexington 91 Columbia Avenue - Chapin
Richland 97 US 176 – Ballentine, White Rock, Peak
Irmo 101 US 76 west / US 176 (Broad River Road) – Ballentine, White Rock West end of US 76 overlap; signed as exits 101A (west) and 101B (east)
102 SC 60 (Lake Murray Boulevard) – Irmo Signed as exits 102A (west) and 102B (east)
103 Harbison Boulevard Exit to reach the Columbiana Mall.
Lexington 104 Piney Grove Road
106 St. Andrews Road Signed as exits 106A (west) and 106B (east-along with Fernandina Road and Burning Tree Road) westbound.
Richland 107 I-20 - Augusta, Florence Signed as exits 107A (west) and 107B (east)
Columbia 108A Bush River Road
108B I-126 (US 76 east) – Downtown Columbia East end of US 76 overlap
Bridge over the Saluda River
Lexington
110 US 378 – Lexington, West Columbia
111 US 1 – Lexington, West Columbia Signed as exits 111A (south) and 111B (north)
Springdale 113 SC 302 – Columbia Airport, Cayce
Cayce 115 US 21 / US 176 / US 321 – Gaston, Cayce, Columbia
116 I-77 north - Charlotte
119 US 21 / US 176 – St. Matthews, Dixiana
Calhoun 125 Old Sandy Run Road - Gaston Exit to reach Sandy Run.
Lexington 129 US 21
Calhoun 136 SC 6 – North, St. Matthews, Swansea
Orangeburg 139 Burke Road - St. Matthews
145 US 601 – Orangeburg, St. Matthews Signed as exits 145A (south) and 145B (north)
149 SC 33 – Orangeburg, Cameron
154 US 301 – Orangeburg, Santee Signed as exits 154A (south) and 154B (north)
159 Road 36 - Bowman
165 SC 210 – Bowman, Vance
169 I-95 - Savannah, Florence Signed as exits 169A (south) and 169B (north)
Dorchester 172 US 15 – St. George, Holly Hill, Santee Signed as exits 172A (south) and 172B (north)
177 SC 453 – Harleyville, Holly Hill
187 SC 27 – Ridgeville, St. George
Bridge over the Ashley River (Wassamassaw Swamp)
Berkeley 194 Road 16 - Jedburg, Pinopolis
199
US 17 Alt. – Summerville, Moncks Corner		 Signed as exits 199A (south) and 199B (north)
Charleston Ladson 203 College Park Road - Goose Creek, Ladson
North Charleston 205 US 78 to US 52 – Goose Creek Signed as exits 205A (west) and 205B (east)
209A US 52 (US 78) – Goose Creek, Moncks Corner Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
209B Ashley Phosphate Road Signed as exit 209A eastbound
211 West Aviation Avenue - Charleston AFB Signed as exits 211A (west) and 211B (east)
212A Remount Road Eastbound exit is via exit 211B
212 I-526 - Savannah, Charleston International Airport, Mt. Pleasant Signed as exits 212B (west) and 212C (east)
213 Montague Avenue, Mall Drive Signed as exits 213A (west) and 213B (east) eastbound
215 SC 642 (Dorchester Road)
216 SC 7 (Cosgrove Avenue) to US 17 south – Charleston Naval Base Signed as exits 216A (south) and 216B (north)
217 US 52 (North Meeting Street) Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
Charleston 218 Spruill Avenue - Charleston Naval Base Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
219A Rutledge Avenue - The Citadel Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
219B Morrison Drive, East Bay Street (US 52 Spur) Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
220A Romney Street Westbound exit only
220B US 17 north – Mt. Pleasant, Georgetown Signed as exit 220 eastbound
221A US 17 south - Savannah Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
221B Meeting Street (US 52) Eastbound exit and westbound entrance

[edit] Auxiliary routes

v • d • e
Auxiliary routes of Interstate 26

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Interstate 26 @ Interstate-Guide.com. Interstate Guide. Retrieved on 2008-02-15.
  2. ^ Overview Map of I-26. Google Maps. Retrieved on 2008-02-15.
edit
Main Interstate Highways (multiples of 5 in pink)		 Interstate Highway marker
4 5 8 10 12 15 16 17 19 20 22 24 25 26 27 29 30
35 37 39 40 43 44 45 49 55 57 59 64 65 66 68 69
70 71 72 73 74 75 76 (W) 76 (E) 77 78 79 80 81 82
83 84 (W) 84 (E) 85 86 (W) 86 (E) 87 88 (W) 88 (E) 89 90
91 93 94 95 96 97 99 (238) H-1 H-2 H-3
Unsigned  A-1 A-2 A-3 A-4 PRI-1 PRI-2 PRI-3
Lists  Primary  Main - Intrastate - Suffixed - Future - Gaps
Auxiliary  Main - Future - Unsigned
Other  Standards - Business - Bypassed
Browse numbered routes
< US 25 NC NC 27 >