The long-awaited final section of the Greensboro (NC) Urban Loop opened to traffic Monday. RK&K was there to celebrate the ribbon-cutting of the $135-million northern loop with state and local leaders.
Crews removed the barricades on Monday afternoon to allow traffic onto the six-lane, interstate-grade highway between North Elm Street and U.S. 29 several months ahead of schedule. With the opening of the northern loop, the 49-mile loop around Greensboro is now complete.
RK&K led CEI services for the last three sections of the loop. This includes the completion of the 1.8-mile western loop in August 2020 and the completion of the 5-mile eastern loop in the fall of 2019. Planning for the entire project began in 1969 and construction began in 1999.
The Greensboro Urban Loop will officially open today.
This is a big deal as the planning for the entire project began in 1969, and construction began in 1999.@WXII pic.twitter.com/qtMzc4qA7z
— WXII Maria DeBone (@WXIIMaria) January 23, 2023
The four-mile, six-lane northern loop corridor includes PCCP on the mainline, soil stabilization, grading, drainage, paving, signals, culverts, ITS, retaining walls, 10 bridges, box culverts, retaining walls, 4 million cubic yards of borrow, 2.3 million cubic yards of unclassified excavation, and utility construction. The northern loop section included approximately 180,000 cubic yards of concrete paving.
“The amount of dirt we moved, and the amount of concrete paved for this project was impressive,” said Field Engineer Garrett Elliott.
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The inspection staff made sure the contractor conformed with the applicable contract documents for the roadway, structures, and specialty items of work incorporated into the project. Lead project staff provided construction management, and project administration, and coordinated with NCDOT staff.
“The relationships our team has with one another are tremendous,” Elliott said. “We spent more time with each other than with our families. Our team takes so much pride in our work, and it was the people in the field that make the difference on a project like this.”
The highway will relieve congestion that has for years clogged Greensboro’s major arteries, including I-40, U.S. 29, and U.S. 220.
WFMY News 2 tested out the Urban Loop to see how much quicker it could make travel. https://t.co/ZPMmwFnjUZ
— WFMY News 2 (@WFMY) January 24, 2023
“This is something we can share with future generations and look at with pride,” Elliott added.
