Autumn has arrived and things are falling into place on the U.S. 70 improvements in James City project!

Construction Progress

Dry utility relocation, including gas, power, and fiber, is fully complete along the project corridor.  Wet utilities are currently 90% complete; this includes all water and sewer for both Craven County and the City of New Bern. Due to the project’s tight corridor, which aimed to minimize business and property displacement, the extensive utility relocation work has taken longer than initially anticipated and the new expected completion date for the project is spring 2027.

Contractor crews are actively working on new storm drains as part of the process to improve existing and open new service roads along the project corridor. Once complete, the project will house 80,000 linear feet of new storm drain lines and 750 storm drain boxes.

The service road between the Trent East Shopping Center and Taco Bell, Burger King, and Bojangles is fully open to traffic. This service road relocation is part of the planned movement of service roads away from U.S. 70 to provide space for the future interchange ramps (shown in top right photo). 

New service road construction is also ongoing on the project at Thurman Road and Taberna Way (shown in middle right photo).

Work at the new Thurman Road interchange is progressing with culverts being constructed that have required a series of traffic shifts (shown in bottom right photo).

‎Drivers who have traveled Westbound on U.S. 70 near the Neuse and Trent rivers may have noticed that noise wall construction  is underway at this location (shown in photo to left).

An additional noise wall will be constructed in this area adjacent to U.S. 70 Eastbound.

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Upcoming Construction

Crews have also begun building entrance/exit ramps for the future Grantham Road interchange. This work, in conjunction with service road openings, signifies stage three is well underway in this section of the project. In the next stage, U.S. 70 travelers will be temporarily shifted onto the new ramps while crews build the bridges that will take the new U.S. 70/Interstate 42 roadway up and over each of the five interchanges (Williams Road, Airport Road, Grantham Road, Taberna Way and Thurman Road).

It is important to note that construction stages will progress at different times through various sections of the project. Currently, a majority of project efforts are focused on Grantham Road, Thurman Road, and Taberna Way, but other major locations along the corridor will continue to see progress over time.

Holiday Hours

As we enter the holiday season, we want to make sure lane closures and other construction operations don’t impact your plans. There will be no lane closures on U.S. 70 or other major roads along the project between Nov. 27 and Dec. 2, nor between Dec. 20 and Jan. 2. 

Stay Safe

In the unfortunate event of a minor, non-injury collision on U.S. 70, motorists are encouraged to move their vehicles to the shoulder of the road to keep traffic moving and reduce the likelihood of secondary wrecks.

As you drive through any work zone across the state, we ask that you stay alert, minimize distractions, and be patient. Let’s work together to make sure everyone gets home — including our construction crew members.

Have a question about the James City improvements project? Email us at US70-JAMESCITY@PUBLICINPUT.COM or call and leave us a message at 1-855-925-2801 and enter code 7872. Visit the project website to learn more: NCDOT.gov/JamesCity.