NC 16 is a 150-mile (251 km) North Carolina state highway that is oriented north-south. It largely serves as a connector route between Charlotte and its suburbs.

Route description

NC 16's northern terminus is at the North Carolina/Virginia state line near Mouth of Wilson, Virginia and its southern terminus is in Waxhaw, North Carolina at NC 75. The route is known as Brookshire Freeway through central Charlotte, North Carolina, Brookshire Boulevard northwest of the city, and Providence Road south of uptown. It is known as Main Avenue through Newton and First Avenue through Conover.

In Uptown Charlotte, NC 16 is divided between two one-way streets: Third Street and Fourth Street. At the John Belk Freeway (I-277) interchange, one must make a u-turn to remain on the NC 16 route since there is no appropriate entrance ramp. This is because Fourth Street is one-way going towards Uptown, and Third Street is one-way going away from there.

Highway 16 is one of the few state routes that is continuous through three states: North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Business route

There is one current business route of NC 16. It traverses NC 16's former two-lane route through Catawba and Gaston counties. This business route was formed after the construction of a nearby four-lane bypass route in 1990.

History

NC 16's southern terminus in Waxhaw

• Before 1928: NC 16 was one of the original North Carolina state highways. It ran due south from NC 10 in Newton to the South Carolina border, following mostly what is today US 321 Business.
• 1928: The route was extended north all the way to the Tennessee border; from to Newton to Wilkesboro it was cosigned with NC 18.
• 1933: NC 16 south of Conover was truncated in favor of US 321.
• 1937: NC 16 dropped its former routing along SR 1562 in the foothills of North Carolina for a more direct route.
• 1939: The route's northern terminus was moved to the Virginia border and its southern terminus was extended southward through Charlotte.
• 1954: NC 16 was rerouted away from North Wilkesboro.
• 1958: NC 16 was slightly diverted for an interchange with the newly constructed Interstate 85.
• 1959: NC 16 gained its own unshared route from US 221 to the Virginia border.
• Late 1950s and early 1960s: NC 16's routing through Charlotte changed numerous times.
• 1963: A zigzag routing in southern Charlotte was removed for NC 16.
• 1988: NC 16 follows the newly built Brookshire Boulevard in northern Charlotte; it used to follow parts of Bellhaven Boulevard and Rozzelles Ferry Road, which still exist.
• 1990: NC 16 is rerouted along a newly built 4-lane bypass through Catawba and Gaston counties. The old route was designated as NC 16 Business.
• Late 1990s and early 2000s: Numerous road widenenings are made along NC 16 in the Charlotte area.

Exit List

This section includes the concurrency with I-277 and all of the Brookshire Freeway/Boulevard south of Interstate 85. Exit numbers are inherited from I-277.

#	Destinations	Notes
joins /John Belk Freeway
2A	NC 16 South - Stonewall Street/Kenilworth Avenue/3rd Street/4th Street	exits southbound and enters northbound; to access south from south/ west, one must make a u-turn at the end of the exit ramp, and then turn left onto 3rd Street
2B	US 74 East - Independence Boulevard	exits eastbound and enters westbound
As Brookshire Freeway
3A	12th Street	Northbound exit; southbound entrance from Davidson Street
3B	Brevard Street/Davidson Street/McDowell Street	Southbound exit; northbound entrance from Caldwell Street
3C	11th Street/Church Street/Tryon Street	Southbound exit; northbound entrance from Church Street
4	US 29/NC 49 - Graham Street	Southbound exit and northbound entrance
5	I-77/US 21 - Statesville/Rock Hill	Southbound destinations for are listed as Trade Street and Fifth Street, the main east-west thoroughfares through Uptown Charlotte
begins southbound and ends northbound
	Beatties Ford Road/Johnson C. Smith University
	Bellhaven Boulevard/To Rozzelles Ferry Road
Brookshire Freeway becomes Brookshire Boulevard
	I-85 - Concord/Gastonia	One of three SPUI interchanges on in Charlotte

Future plans

NC 16 is expected to be rerouted onto a new bypass route in northwestern Mecklenburg, eastern Gaston and southeastern Catawba counties. When completed, this will become the second limited-access stretch of NC 16 (as such, I-277 shares part of the one existing portion). The new bypass is expected to be completed by 2010. In 2008, widening began on the fast-growing part of the road in Union County, which consists of the southernmost part of the highway. The road will be widened from I-485 to Rea RD, south of Weddington.

See also

• Interstate 277 (North Carolina)
• U.S. Highway 74
• Lake Norman
• Catawba River

References and external links

• NC Roads (mirror) - NC 16