Interstate 85 | ||||
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Route information | ||||
Maintained by NCDOT | ||||
Length: | 234.6 mi (377.6 km) | |||
Existed: | 1958 – present | |||
Major junctions | ||||
South end: | I-85 at the SC line near Blacksburg, SC | |||
I‑485 in Charlotte (twice) I‑77 / US 21 in Charlotte I‑85 Bus. / US 29 / US 52 / US 70 near Lexington I‑74 / US 311 near Archdale I‑73 / US 421 in Greensboro I‑40 in Greensboro US 15 / US 501 in Durham US 1 in Henderson |
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North end: | I‑85 at the VA line near Bracey, VA | |||
Location | ||||
Counties: | Cleveland, Gaston, Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Rowan, Davidson, Randolph, Guilford, Alamance, Orange, Durham, Granville, Vance, Warren | |||
Highway system | ||||
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In the U.S. state of North Carolina, Interstate 85 (I-85) scales the state for 234.6 miles (377.6 km) from the South Carolina border to the Virginia border. As the second-longest interstate in the state (behind Interstate 40), it provides an important link between the cities of Atlanta, Greenville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Richmond, Virginia and Washington, D.C..
I-85 enters the state from Cherokee County, South Carolina near Grover in Cleveland County, which is part of the Charlotte metropolitan area. After only a few miles, the highway enters Gaston County. Near Kings Mountain, I-85 turns from a northeast trajectory to an eastward one and goes through Gastonia, where it widens from four to six lanes. It stays at six lanes until it reaches Belmont, where the highway widens again to eight lanes.
The highway crosses the Catawba River just before entering Charlotte. It passes north of Charlotte-Douglas International Airport and goes by a number of retail centers before turning northeastward again just west of Uptown Charlotte. The highway bypasses the downtown area, but several exits do provide access to the area. A partial wrong-way interchange exists at the exit with Interstate 77 north of Uptown.