Cary Parkway
Encyclopedia
The Cary Parkway is a major semi-circular route through Cary, North Carolina
. The parkway serves approximately as Cary's outer ring highway, though it does not form a complete circle like the inner ring, Maynard Road. Viewing a map of the city as a clock-face
, Cary Parkway extends counterclockwise approximately from the 1 o'clock position in the northeast down to the 5 o'clock position in the southeast. At that point, the road departs from its circular path and heads southeast toward its terminus at Holly Springs Road.
Cary Parkway was built and widened in many stages over two decades, with one of the first stretches running from Seabrook Avenue to High Meadow Drive in south-central Cary. When it was originally built, the road was a two-lane road and was not striped. The intersection with Kildaire Farm Road was a stop sign. In the mid-1980s the City of Cary expanded the highway across US 1
/64 to Holly Springs Road in east Cary, creating an interchange at 1/64 and widening the part of the parkway east of Kildaire Farm Road to a four-lane divided highway. West of Kildaire Farm road, the parkway remained a two-lane undivided road up to its original western terminus at Old Apex Road (this segment was not widened to four lanes until the late 1990s). West of that intersection, a four-lane divided segment of the parkway was constructed from scratch in the late 1980s and originally dead-ended just south of High House Road in western Cary for several years. Separately, a small unconnected stretch of Cary Parkway ran from west of Harrison Avenue to well east of Evans Road. During the second stretch of expansion this portion of the parkway was connected to the portion ending south of High House Road (passing through a short stretch of the town of Morrisville
along the way), and extended eastward to Harrison Avenue. Currently, the only portion of the parkway that remains a two-lane undivided roadway is the segment running from just east of Evans Road to just west of Harrison Avenue.
There have been several discussions of extending the parkway. To the southeast, one plan brought the parkway from Holly Springs Road to Gorman Street in Raleigh
. To the northeast, there has been talk of extending the parkway eastward from Harrison Avenue toward Trinity Road and I-40
in northeast Cary. This expansion has been approved by the city although construction will not begin before 2016
Major intersections, clockwise from southeast to northeast:
Cary, North Carolina
Cary is a large town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake and Chatham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located almost entirely in Wake County, it is the second largest municipality in that county and the third largest municipality in The Triangle after Raleigh and Durham...
. The parkway serves approximately as Cary's outer ring highway, though it does not form a complete circle like the inner ring, Maynard Road. Viewing a map of the city as a clock-face
Clock position
Clock position is a way of communicating the relative direction of an object using the analogy of a 12-hour clock. One imagines a clock face lying either upright or flat in front of oneself, and identifies the twelve hour markings with the directions in which they point.Using this analogy, 12...
, Cary Parkway extends counterclockwise approximately from the 1 o'clock position in the northeast down to the 5 o'clock position in the southeast. At that point, the road departs from its circular path and heads southeast toward its terminus at Holly Springs Road.
Cary Parkway was built and widened in many stages over two decades, with one of the first stretches running from Seabrook Avenue to High Meadow Drive in south-central Cary. When it was originally built, the road was a two-lane road and was not striped. The intersection with Kildaire Farm Road was a stop sign. In the mid-1980s the City of Cary expanded the highway across US 1
U.S. Route 1 in North Carolina
U.S. Route 1 is an north–south United States highway that runs for from the South Carolina state line, near Rockingham, to the Virginia state line, near Wise...
/64 to Holly Springs Road in east Cary, creating an interchange at 1/64 and widening the part of the parkway east of Kildaire Farm Road to a four-lane divided highway. West of Kildaire Farm road, the parkway remained a two-lane undivided road up to its original western terminus at Old Apex Road (this segment was not widened to four lanes until the late 1990s). West of that intersection, a four-lane divided segment of the parkway was constructed from scratch in the late 1980s and originally dead-ended just south of High House Road in western Cary for several years. Separately, a small unconnected stretch of Cary Parkway ran from west of Harrison Avenue to well east of Evans Road. During the second stretch of expansion this portion of the parkway was connected to the portion ending south of High House Road (passing through a short stretch of the town of Morrisville
Morrisville, North Carolina
Morrisville is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, United States. A small portion of the town extends into Durham County. The population was 18,576 according to a April 1, 2010 census. Morrisville is part of the Research Triangle metropolitan region...
along the way), and extended eastward to Harrison Avenue. Currently, the only portion of the parkway that remains a two-lane undivided roadway is the segment running from just east of Evans Road to just west of Harrison Avenue.
There have been several discussions of extending the parkway. To the southeast, one plan brought the parkway from Holly Springs Road to Gorman Street in Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
. To the northeast, there has been talk of extending the parkway eastward from Harrison Avenue toward Trinity Road and I-40
Interstate 40 in North Carolina
Interstate 40 runs through the state of North Carolina from the Tennessee state line in the west to its eastern terminus in Wilmington.-Pigeon River Gorge:...
in northeast Cary. This expansion has been approved by the city although construction will not begin before 2016
Major intersections, clockwise from southeast to northeast:
- Holly Springs Road
- Tryon Road
- US 1/64 Interchange
- Kildaire Farm Road
- Lake Pine Drive
- Old Apex Road
- Chatham Street
- High House Road
- Chapel Hill Road (NC 54)
- Evans Road
- Harrison Avenue