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Balfour Parkway, N.C. 191 widening on NC road plan

The new Balfour Parkway and the widening of N.C.191 from Mountain Road to N.C. 280 in Mills River, are included in the state's next 10-year transportation plan for major road projects, the NCDOT announced Tuesday.

The 4.6-mile project, , a four-lane highway that would connect U.S. 64 East to N.C. 191 at Asheville Highway, has been talked about in one form or another for more than 25 years. An earlier version that would involve a similar northwest connector and I-26 interchange was the so-called Clear Creek connector, which never got out off the ground.

The Mills River Town Council discussed the N.C. 191 widening last week and agreed to recommend a five-lane highway with a center turn lane, bike lanes and sidewalks.

The fact that the multilane Balfour Parkway and N.C. 191 projects are in the new 10-year plan sets up a potential bottleneck with higher capacity roads ending at a two-lane stretch in Hendersonville. In the past, when proposals for widening N.C. 191 have come up, residents in the many subdivisions and condo developments along the road have rallied to oppose the project.

Five bicycle and pedestrian project, one aviation, and 16 highway projects are expected to be funded at the division level for Division 14, which consists Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Polk, Swain and Transylvania counties.

Other projects include:
-- Widening the Tuckeaseegee section of N.C. 107 in Jackson County;
-- Improving the safety of five intersections in Bryson City with enhanced vehicle and pedestrian flow.
-- Expanding South Main Street to create multiple lanes between Hyatt Creek and Pigeon Street in Waynesville.