PEMBROKE – Beginning on Tuesday, May 7, the N.C. Department of Transportation will temporarily close North Odom Street/Prospect Road near the Givens Performing Arts Center as part of a $5 million corridor improvement project.
The closure will be in both directions between Alumni Lane/First Street and University Drive, and the road is expected to reopen by June 18. Drivers will not have access to Alumni Lane or First Street from North Odom Street during the closure.
Detour signs will direct drivers to use West Third Street, University Road and St. Anna Road.
An NCDOT contractor will use the closure to safely install three crossline drainage pipes underneath the pavement and pour the concrete island for a roundabout that will be built at University Drive.
Last spring, state Transportation Secretary Jim Trogdon joined officials from UNC-Pembroke and the town of Pembroke to break ground on reconstructing about a mile of this campus gateway. The contractor is reducing the five-lane corridor into one lane in each direction and adding a raised median to improve safety for drivers and the many students who cross it every day.
The project also includes constructing roundabouts at Cornith Road and adding sidewalks, crosswalks and pedestrian signals. The new road will be wide enough to better accommodate bicyclists. This minute-long video shows how the rebuilt road will look and function.
The entire project is expected to be completed by the end of this year.