UPDATE: Due to showers this week, the traffic shift described below has been rescheduled for 8 p.m. Thursday, June 18.
CLAYTON – The N.C. 42 widening in Johnston County will mark a milestone Monday when traffic is scheduled to be permanently shifted onto the highway’s new bridge over the Neuse River in Clayton.
A contractor for the N.C. Department of Transportation plans to make the shift between Fox Ridge and Castleberry roads at 8 p.m. Monday. Drivers should be alert for workers in the roadway and temporary slowdowns until the shift is completed overnight Monday.
The change is dependent on dry weather. If it rains Monday night, the traffic switch will delayed to the next day that is dry.
After the traffic shift, crews will begin demolishing the existing two-lane bridge in order to finish constructing the new one, which will be higher and have five lanes when completed by 2022.
Beginning Monday night, eastbound drivers on N.C. 42 will have a dedicated left-turn lane and a flashing yellow signal to go left onto Castleberry Road, reducing backups during the afternoon commute. The traffic signal will include a left-turn arrow when the bridge is fully built.
Construction began in late 2018 after the NCDOT awarded a $58.7 million contract to widen the congested two-lane highway to four lanes with a raised median and several new traffic signals between Glen Laurel Road and Buffalo Road east of Clayton. The improvements will reduce congestion, improve safety and better accommodate population growth anticipated to occur in the future.