NEW BERN – The N.C. Department of Transportation will close ramps for part of U.S. 70 in Craven County as the project to bring the highway up to interstate standards continues.
This Saturday will be the first weekend closure of U.S. 70 westbound ramps at Pembroke Avenue. Following its completion, there will be future weekend ramp closures for Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and S. Glenburnie Road.
For each ramp closure, there will be signs detouring traffic. Drivers should anticipate needing extra time for their commutes.
The work is part of a larger project to bring U.S. 70 up to interstate standards. Crews are widening shoulders, as well as, milling and repaving the highway, which will be renamed Interstate 42. The project in its entirety is 32 miles long and costs $25.5. million.
Also a part of that project, lane closures on U.S. 70 in New Bern will continue weekdays. The work on this portion of the project will close one lane at a time in either the eastbound or westbound side of the highway from the Twin Span Bridges in New Bern to Old U.S. 70 in Dover. The contractor is working to widen the shoulders, as well as, mill and repave the highway.
While one lane will remain open for traffic, drivers are urged to slow down when approaching the work zones. Drivers are also encouraged to seek alternate routes during these times, as backups are likely.