Driving95 | I-95 Corridor Planning & Financing Study

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is I-95 important to North Carolina?
The 182 miles of I-95 in North Carolina are crucial for the movement of people and goods across the state and along the entire Eastern Seaboard. I-95 provides freight access to the major ports in Wilmington and Morehead City, and convenient connections to rail facilities for the transfer and distribution of goods. The corridor also serves thousands of motorists traveling within the state, and to the north and south of North Carolina. I-95 is a direct route to Fort Bragg, the largest Army installation in the world based on population.

Why do we need the I-95 Corridor Planning and Finance study?
This study will create a blueprint for the future of I-95 in North Carolina. It will determine the road’s needs, define and prioritize necessary improvements, and identify ways to fund these improvements.

Is there something wrong with I-95 through North Carolina?
I-95 in North Carolina was first built between 1956 and 1980. With the exception of some sections near Fayetteville and the I-95/I-40 interchange near Benson, it is basically the same four-lane highway as when it was first built. It does not meet the most current design standards for a freeway carrying a large percentage of truck traffic. These standards specify 12-foot lanes with 12-foot paved shoulders and greater clearance under bridges. The medians are also too narrow along I-95 through much of the state.

Past studies have shown that I-95 in North Carolina must be reconstructed and widened to meet the needs of the growing number of vehicles that travel on it every day. This current study will produce detailed estimates of future traffic and evaluate whether the existing lanes on I-95 are sufficient to handle it.

Pavement and bridge conditions along I-95 are also an issue. Data from NCDOT show that between one-third and one-half of the pavement along I-95 in North Carolina is rated as “very poor,” “poor” or “fair” and will need to be resurfaced or reconstructed within the next 10 years. Bridges on I-95 are in poor condition as well. Of the 188 bridges over I-95 in North Carolina, 88 have already been identified as needing repair or replacement.

Video courtesy of Missouri DOT

Additionally, the public has long expressed concerns about the safety of I-95 in North Carolina. The News and Observer called I-95 “North Carolina’s deadliest interstate,” stating that “crashes in which people die happen on I-95 at twice the rate of any other interstate in North Carolina.” NCDOT accident data supports this statement.

How long will the study take to complete?
The I-95 study will be completed by Fall 2011. The main reason the study team established this timeframe is to ensure it can accurately examine future traffic along I-95. Developing a traffic model involves consideration of land uses, alternative routes, the types of vehicles using I-95, and many other factors. It also considers where vehicles are beginning and ending their trips. Collecting all of this information will take several months and must be completed before other aspects of the study can move forward.

Will the study consider tolling I-95? Has the decision to toll already been made?
No, a decision has not been made to toll I-95. The I-95 study will evaluate tolling as one of many options for funding improvements to the corridor. The study will provide an in-depth assessment of the needs for I-95 in North Carolina, with detailed information on the associated costs of improvements. Funding options using both toll and non-toll alternatives will be explored.

When will the improvements to I-95 be made?
The role of the study is to create a blueprint for the future of I-95 in North Carolina, which includes identifying and prioritizing specific projects along the corridor for planning and construction. The timeline for implementing these projects will depend on available funding. A study completed in 2003 at the request of the state legislature suggested that tolling I-95 would allow individual projects to move forward more quickly, while non-toll alternatives would take longer.

How much will the study cost? Why hire consultants to do this work? What will we get for the price tag?
The I-95 study will cost approximately $6.4 million. Expert consultants were chosen for this project because of their experience with sophisticated traffic modeling, public outreach and funding options. This project will produce several tools that can be used again as planning and construction projects along various sections of I-95 move forward in the future. These include:

An implementation plan, which defines individual projects along the corridor and ranks them in order of need;
A regional traffic model, which can predict future traffic volumes along I-95 and the effect that tolling I-95 would have on other roads such as U.S. 301;
A functional (i.e. conceptual-level) design for the improvements to I-95, which can be further refined as projects are initiated along sections of I-95;
A project website, toll-free hotline and other public outreach tools.

How much money will it cost each person to use I-95 if it is tolled?
The I-95 study will evaluate a range of toll rates for the I-95 corridor in North Carolina as part of the financial analysis. Similar toll facilities around the country charge tolls in the range of 10 to 20 cents per mile.

Are you going to treat local drivers differently from out-of-state drivers if I-95 is tolled?
Various toll scenarios will be evaluated as part of the I-95 study, including ways to reduce the burden on daily commuters.

Tolling I-95 could affect U.S. 301. Will the study include those effects?
Yes. The traffic model being developed as part of the I-95 study will predict the effect that tolling I-95 would have on other roads such as U.S. 301.

What can NCDOT learn from the public? How will NCDOT use this information?
NCDOT wants to know: “What’s your view of I-95 in North Carolina?” We are interested in learning how the public uses I-95, your perception of its deficiencies, what you think should be improved and how different funding options would affect you.

NCDOT will use this information in several different ways. It will impact the technical decisions, especially in helping NCDOT decide where the greatest needs are along I-95. It will also ensure that all financing options are explored and that the impact of any recommended option is fully understood. Although NCDOT is not asking the public to vote on the future of I-95, we do want to make sure your voice will be heard and that the decision-making process is open and transparent.

Why aren’t other interstates in North Carolina, such as I-85, also being considered for tolling?
This study focuses on I-95, but it does not preclude consideration of tolling other interstate routes in North Carolina. I-95 is being considered for tolling because of its deteriorating conditions and the expensive anticipated costs of the necessary improvements. I-95 is basically the same four-lane highway today as when it was first built. I-85 has been widened in many locations over the years, particularly between Gastonia and Durham.

Won’t toll booths on I-95 slow down and/or delay traffic?
The I-95 study is looking at ways to collect tolls without the use of toll booths. One option might include creating a free-flow toll zone using an electronic collection system in which there will be no stopping to pay tolls. To go through these zones, drivers could choose to affix a transponder to the interior windshield. As the vehicle passes through the toll zone, an overhead receiver detects the transponder and the toll amount is deducted from a prepaid account.

Drivers without a transponder would have a picture of their license plate taken when they pass through the toll zones. They would then pay their tolls by establishing a prepaid account linked to the vehicle license plate number, or by a post-paid transaction requiring NCDOT to identify drivers using DMV records and then bill the customer via mail.

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