Raeford Road is one of Fayetteville’s most congested — and most dangerous — routes. According to the Raeford Road Corridor Study’s final report in 2010, about 78 percent of the crashes occurred between intersections – a statistic that highlights the safety concern of the two-way center lane and the numerous driveway openings along the route.
The crash rate on Raeford Road is 1.8 times what is normal for a similar multilane road. The rate is 727 crashes per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. By comparison, the average statewide crash rate for a comparable route is 395.
Plans for improving Raeford Road date to 1997, when the Fayetteville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization requested a study on the feasibility of adding a landscaped median along a large swath of the road to reduce crashes and improve traffic flow.
2010 Raeford Road Corridor Study
In 2010, officials with NCDOT, the city of Fayetteville, and the Fayetteville Area Metropolitan Planning Organization began studying the corridor again with the kickoff of a series of advisory committee meetings. The first of several public outreach efforts began in March 2010 with a symposium of business owners, public safety representatives, elected officials, and other corridor stakeholders.
Among the study’s findings was a recommendation to convert the continuous two-way center lane into a concrete or landscaped median along most of the corridor. The study also called for the construction of directional crossovers at 11 intersections. A crossover allows traffic on Raeford Road to turn left while preventing side-street traffic from going straight across or making a left turn at the same location.