When the N.C. General Assembly created the State
Highway Commission in 1915, North Carolina had just over 1,200 miles of paved –
but not hard-surfaced – roads and a larger network of roads made of sand-clay,
gravel and dirt and mud.
Today, the N.C. Department of Transportation is responsible
for one of the nation's largest highway systems – a network of modern
interstates, U.S. and N.C. routes that make up nearly 80,000 miles of roadway –
the equivalent of circling the earth three times – that reaches every corner of
the state.
From planning to building to maintaining, the
Division of Highways is responsible for all aspects of the state's highways and
roadsides, as well as more than 13,500 bridges, to ensure that traffic moves
safely and efficiently.
NCDOT divides these responsibilities across the
state into 14 regions – referred to as highway divisions – that receive support
from various
sections and units within the Division of Highways.