Interstate 240 (North Carolina)
Interstate 240 (I-240) is a Interstate Highway loop in the US state of North Carolina. It serves as an urban connector for Asheville and runs in a semicircle around the north of the city's downtown district between exits 53B and 46B of I-40. Between those points, I-40 continues in an east–west direction further south of the city, roughly parallel to the Swannanoa and French Broad rivers. The western segment of I-240 is now being cosigned with I-26 as part of a larger project extending I-26 from its former western terminus at I-40/I-240 to U.S. Highway 23 (US 23) near Kingsport, Tennessee. However, NCDOT officially identifies this part of I-26 as Future 26. A planned construction project, dubbed the I-26 Connector, is a $600–800-million project to build the missing gap of I-26 through Asheville. Broken into three sections, they are all planned and funded in the 2016–2025 STIP. Section A, between Haywood Road and Brevard Road, will be a widening project with reconfiguration of ramps at Haywood, Amboy and Brevard. Section B, between north of Haywood Road to US 19/US 23/US 70, is the most expensive section of the project at $332 million. After a review of various alternative designs, both state and federal agencies chose Alternative 4B, which will convert Patton Avenue along Bowen Bridges to local traffic and reroute I-240 along I-26 further north. Section C, the I-26/I-240/I-40 interchange, will be reconfigured to include missing ramp connects and a widening of I-40 through the area. The approximately project will begin right-of-way acquisition in 2019, with construction on all three sections in 2021. Additional plans for I-240 in west Asheville call for its expansion from four lanes to eight lanes. Years prior to the loop's completion, I-240 was known as I-140; however, no signage was ever posted for I-140. The I-140 designation has now been given to a spur route in Wilmington. Route description I-240 begins at an interchange with I-26 and I-40 west of Asheville. I-240 and I-26 travel concurrently for along the western section of the routing. I-240 travels almost parallel to the French Broad River to its east. In the northwestern part of the route, US 19, US 23, and U.S. Highway 74 Alternate (US 74A) merge onto I-240 to cross the French Broad River. After crossing the river, I-26 proper ends and becomes Future I-26. Future I-26/US 19/US 23 exit off to the north and US 70 merges with I-240. The concurrent highways travel through the northern section of downtown Asheville. US 70/US 74A exits off I-240 at Charlotte Street. The Interstate continues through a cut in the mountain before turning back to the south. I-240 cross the Swannanoa River near Asheville Mall before terminating at an interchange with I-40 while the roadway continues on as US 74A, known locally as Charlotte Highway. History In the early 1960s, the east–west freeway around downtown Asheville, designated US 19/US 23, opened from the Beaucatcher Tunnel westward to NC 191. By 1966, Hanover Street had been converted to a