Construction on Wilmington bypass leaves large gap in road

Thursday we reported that more than $20 million in federal stimulus money was going to speed up construction on the Wilmington bypass. The part of the bypass connecting North Market Street to Highway 421 is complete. You would think the next thing they would build is the B leg, going west from what is already been finished. Instead they are going to build the segment from Highway 17 in Brunswick County north to 74/76, leaving a big gap in the middle. There is a reason for this, said the DOT's Allen Pope. “We started looking at the B section and wanted to build a piece of the B section. The first connecting piece, from 421 over to Cedar Hill Road is all bridge and is a $140 million project by itself. It really got down to economics and what we could use the dollars for to build on the Wilmington bypass.” Pope said the southern leg could be completed within three years. The middle section goes to construction in 2012. By 2015, the Wilmington bypass should be completed from start to finish.