Where:    From I-77 Exit 101 to US 52 South of Mt. Airy, Surry County Length:    12 Miles Status:     COMPLETE Signed as:

From I-77, I-74 travels by itself (the only current portion of I-74 not signed with another route) to US 52. This segment was the second section of I-74 to be signed as a full Interstate. The entire route was fully opened to traffic on June 30, 1999. Work on this highway occurred in three segments starting in 1991. The first section from I-77 to NC 89, predates the I-74 designation, cost $10 million to build, and was signed as NC 752 when it opened in 1994. Work on the second section to extend the freeway to US 601 began in 1994 and cost $22.5 million. When this part of the highway was completed in 1998 the entire route was signed as I-74. Travelers reaching the temporary eastern end at US 601 were directed back to US 52 South with very optimistic "To East Interstate 74" signs. (1) The segment was completed with the construction of the remaining 5 miles from US 601 to US 52 at a cost of about $30 million. (2) This segment is the only part of I-74 where exit numbers use I-74's mileage (numbers run from 5 to 17, see the I-74 exit list for more information). There is currently an end I-74 sign before merging with US 52 southbound (see last of the photos below). The only thing to have happened to this stretch of roadway since 1999 was a repaving job from I-77 to US 601 that was completed during the fall of 2007. (3)

Exit 6 (NC 89) signs awaiting installation on I-74 East in early 1998 (photo courtesy of Adam Prince)

Photos taken in November 2002:

Sign assembly at NC 86 interchange

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Jct I-74 sign at Red Brush Road interchange

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Sign assembly at Red Brush Road West I-74 ramp

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Jct I-74 sign at Park Drive interchange

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New photos from September 2009 along the Roadway Itself, heading Eastbound to mark (belatedly) the 10th anniversary of the highway's opening:

Approaching the original End of I-74 at US 601. (9/18/09)

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The next Exit 11, US 601 sign. (9/18/09).

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Now approaching Park Drive, the next to last exit before reaching US 52. (9/18/09)

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Approaching US 52. As with most exit signs, the first one is 2 miles away. (9/18/09)

The final exit sign assembly for this section of I-74, you can notice in the distance an End I-74 sign (photo below). It is still unknown at this time when an I-74 shield will fill in the left-hand sign. (9/18/09)

Sources: ADC North Carolina Road Atlas 1999, p. 42;
(1) Former NCRoads.com, I-74 Page.
(2) Linville. Jeff. 1999. "Motorists To Get Green Light June 30." The Mount Airy News. June 27.
(3) Wireback, Taft. 2007. "Paving Project to Start on I-74." Winston-Salem Journal, July.

I-74 table shield courtesy of David R. Kendrick's Shield's Up!.