What is the story behind the Narrow Lanes on Falls of the Neuse Road in N. Raleigh? (Wake Forest: cars)

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

Is it just me or are there sections of Falls of The Neuse Road (Like around the intersection at Millbrook Road) where the lanes in the road seem incredibly narrow. I fee like the cars are right on top of each other. This is the only road I have experienced this on in the Triangle. Anybody else ever notice that! IT drives me crazy...I used to think it was just in my head, but my wife mentioned it to me as well just the other day.... maybe we are both crazy!

[MikeJaquish]

NRG,
I got used to it years ago. They needed lanes and couldn't stand the whole right of way acquisition process(imagine the cost) so they squeezed the width to the minimum.
It is a little cozy, isn't it.

[RaleighRob]

I've always noticed it.
Actually it starts as that way while its still called "Wake Forest Road", just above the beltline, and stays very narrow all the way up to just a little below Spring Forest.

From what I've been told, they basically increased the number of lanes without actually widening the road!

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

Thanks guys....I was afraid I may have been imagining it. I guess I am not crazy after all! It is kind of the opposite of what happened in the episode of Seinfeld where Kramer "Adopts a Highway" and repaints the lines in the road turning a 4-lane highway into a two lane highway with "Wide Lanes"!

I wonder if they will do the same narrow lane thing with the proposed widening of Falls of the Neuse north of Raven Ridge Road.

[OmegaBaby]

Yea...I'm always scared driving down this road. I'm always thinking I'm going to bump up against the person next to me. So I usually drive half on the center turn lane . And I drive a small car....I can't imagine driving a Hummer down this road .

I remember a story on WRAL about this, where they asked the guy 'in charge' of this road why it was like this, and he was practically offended by the question, and was adamant that it met minimum guidelines (personally, I don't know how it could possibly meet guidelines). I think the guy was just upset because he probably gets the question alot. Honestly, I wish they would turn it back into 2 lanes each direction, since the 3 lanes are not effectively used anyway because you cannot safely fit 3 cars side-by-side on that road.


Some other neat facts...

The official name of the road is "Falls of Neuse", not "Falls of the Neuse".

Because of the existince of Falls Lake, there is no longer any falls on the Neuse. There used to be falls by the current location of the dam.

[Retail Queen]

HAHAHAAH you should have seen us trying to get our Uhaul down this stretch of road. It was so funny. Everyone was mad at us. Oh well. That is what they get for taking a two lane highway and turning it into 3 lanes.