SYLVA – The N.C. Department of Transportation recently awarded a contract to improve travel conditions on N.C. 107 through Sylva.
Buchanan & Sons of Whittier earned the $103 million contract for a transformative project that will improve safety for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. In general, the project will convert N.C. 107 from a narrow, five-lane highway into a safer, wider highway featuring turn lanes, bulb-outs and bike lanes.
“We are thankful to all of the agencies, communities and partners that have worked for years to make the idea of better transportation in Sylva a reality,” NCDOT Division 14 Engineer Wesley Grindstaff said. “It’s a milestone worth celebrating, but just for a minute, because it is also a new starting point for the construction phase of this transformation.”
The entire project encompasses 2.6 miles of N.C. 107, from Mill Street to Lovedale Road, and a short stretch of U.S. 23 Business where it meets N.C. 107. Overhead utility lines are currently being moved and construction operations should begin in the spring on the 1,674-foot-long Mill Creek culvert.
The project includes the following features:
- 1 new signalized intersection — Cherry Street and East Hall Heights
- 6 new bulb-outs providing U-turn accessibility
- 6 upgraded traffic signals
- 24 retaining walls to reduce property acquisition
- 2 new bike lanes — one in each direction
The contract allows crews to begin operations in April of 2026 and calls for the work to be completed by late 2031. The contract requires for a majority of the work to be conducted at night to reduce impacts to traffic and local economic activity in the corridor.
The construction is phased to keep at least one lane in each direction open at all times along with access to every business along the route.