Contents

U.S. Route 158

Highway in the United States

U.S. Highway 158
US 158 mainline in red, business routes in blue
Route information
Auxiliary route of US 58
Maintained by NCDOT
Length	350.2 mi[1] (563.6 km)
Existed	1932–present
Major junctions
West end	US 64 / US 601inMocksville
Major intersections	I-40inWinston-Salem US 52 / NC 8 in Winston-Salem I-73 / US 220inSummerfield US 29inReidsville I-85 near Oxford I-85 / US 1inHenderson I-95 near Roanoke Rapids US 301inWeldon US 258 near Murfreesboro US 17inElizabeth City
East end	US 64 / NC 12atWhalebone Junction
Location
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Counties	Davie, Forsyth, Guilford, Rockingham, Caswell, Person, Granville, Vance, Warren, Halifax, Northampton, Hertford, Gates, Pasquotank, Camden, Currituck, Dare
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided North Carolina Highway System Interstate US State Scenic
← NC 157 → NC 159

U.S. Route 158 (US 158) is an east–west United States highway that runs for 350 miles (560 km) from MocksvilletoWhalebone JunctioninNags Head, entirely in the state of North Carolina. It is also a critical route that connects the cities of Winston-Salem, Summerfield, and Reidsville with one another.

Route description[edit]

US 158 is a parallel of U.S. Route 58 (which runs generally through southern Virginia). The route does not intersect its parent, instead intersecting its sibling, US 258. It currently runs for 350 miles (560 km) from Mocksville, at US 64/US 601toWhalebone Junction in the town of Nags Head. A 10 miles (16 km) stretch skirts the Great Dismal Swamp.

InMocksville, it begins and heads north of the US 64/US 601 junction, through the downtown area. Out of town, it turns northeasterly, following in parallel to Interstate 40 (I-40) to Winston-Salem. In the city, the route uses the name Stratford Road which is an arterial thoroughfare which enters into a busy commercial district passing by Hanes Mall and it passes two folded diamond junctions with Interstate 40 and the expressway Silas Creek Parkway (NC 67). US 158 leaves the road to merge with the freeway Salem Parkway (US 421) for a short concurrency through the downtown area. Just east of town, it leaves US 421 and turns roughly north, closely paralleling nearby US 311, heading into Walkertown where both routes intersect with the future Interstate 74, which is currently designated as NC 74, and NC 66. Here, Motorists can use both NC 66 and NC 74 to connect between US 158 and US 311 within town. It then passes through Belews Creek, taking on a northeasterly path and effectively bypassing the Kernersville area, and passes thru Stokesdale where it meets two more NC Highways, NC 65, and NC 68. Shortly after, it passes through the north part of Summerfield, intersecting Interstate 73 (which carries U.S. Route 220 along it). It then leads further east to Reidsville, where it links to US 29 Business. From Reidsville, US 158 connects the northern counties of North Carolina, going through the cities and towns of Yanceyville, Roxboro, Oxford, Henderson, Roanoke Rapids, Murfreesboro, and Elizabeth City.

From North Carolina Highway 168 (NC 168) eastward, it carries traffic from the Norfolk region to the Outer Banks. Normally, the route is a four-lane undivided highway with a speed limit of 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) in Dare County, from its eastern terminus to the Wright Memorial Bridge. Most of the route is otherwise a four-lane divided highway with a 55 miles per hour (89 km/h) speed limit until NC 168 (which carries traffic to Chesapeake, Virginia), where it turns left at an at-grade intersection. It then returns to being undivided.

In Dare County, the highway runs in a north–south direction, although it is signed west–east. It acts as a bypass route for the Virginia Dare Trail (NC 12), which runs parallel to US 158 to the east. For the entire length of the Outer Banks, US 158 is known as Croatan Highway.

History[edit]

US 158 was established in 1932, as a concurrency with NC 48 from MocksvilletoMurfreesboro and NC 12, from Murfreesboro to Virginia state line. US 158 also replaced US 117 routing between Murfreesboro to Franklin, Virginia. In 1934, NC 48 and NC 12 were removed from its routing. In 1937 or 1938, US 158's western terminus moved from Depot Street to Main Street in Mocksville.^{[2][failed verification]} In 1941, US 158 swapped routes with NC 65 between Stokesdale and Reidsville. Also in the same year, US 158 was rerouted east at Murfreesboro, replacing NC 30toCamden and NC 34 crossing the Croatan Sound and ending at NC 345, near Manteo; its old alignment north of Murfreesboro became part of US 258. Between 1945-1949, US 158's western terminus moved to its current location at Main and Lexington Streets, in Mocksville; also in same time period, US 158 was moved onto new routing through Roxboro; its old alignment along Main Street became US 501A. In 1946, US 158 bypassed north of Gatesville, with its old alignment became US 158A.

Around 1951, US 158 was removed from Roanoke Island and was truncated at its current eastern terminus at Whalebone Junction, on Bodie Island; its former routing was replaced by US 64/US 264. In 1951, US 158 was placed on new bypass north of Henderson, leaving behind US 158A along its old alignment.^[3] Around 1954, US 158 was placed on one-way streets in downtown Winston-Salem: westbound via Clover Dale Street, Glade Street and fifth street; eastbound via first and fourth streets. In 1955, US 158 was bypassed north of Warrenton, leaving behind US 158A along its former alignment.^[4]

In 1959, US 158 was moved onto new expressway between Stratford to Marshall and Cherry Streets, in Winston-Salem. In 1960, US 158 was moved onto its current routing in Bodie Island, leaving behind US 158 Business.^[5]

By 1962, US 158 had completed its transition onto the freeway in Winston-Salem, leaving behind US 158 Business. Between 1963-1967, US 158 was routed onto one-way streets in Weldon.^[6] In 1968, US 158 was rerouted in Elizabeth City.^[7]

In 1971, US 158 was placed onto the Yanceyville bypass; its old routing through the downtown area was partly replaced by NC 62, with Main Street downgraded to secondary road.^[8] In 1973, US 13/US 158 was placed on new western bypass of Winton, its old alignment became part of NC 45.^[9] In 1979, US 158 was placed on bypass north of Reidsville, via US 29 Bus. and NC 14; its old alignment became mostly secondary roads, with just part remaining as NC 87.^[10] In 1984, US 17/US 158 was rerouted again in Elizabeth City.^[11] In 1995, US 158 was rerouted onto new bypass south of Murfreesboro, leaving behind US 158 Business.^[12]

In May 2016, NCDOT's applied to AASHTO to change US 158's route in the Reidsville area. Instead of following Bus. US 29 and NC 87 north to NC 14 and then South-east on NC 14 to US 29, the route would bypass the City by taking US 158 south along Bus. US 29/NC 87 to where they split and then following NC 87 South to US 29. US 158 would then run concurrent with US 29 to the NC 14 exit where it would resume its old alignment. AASHTO approved the change on May 24 at the meeting of the Special Committee on U.S. Route Numbering in Waterloo, Iowa. NCDOT passed its ordinance approving the change on March 5, 2018.^[13]

U.S. Route 117[edit]

U.S. Route 117 (US 117) was established in 1926 to run for 159 miles (256 km) from Norlina, through the towns of Warrenton, Roanoke Rapids, and Murfreesboro; from there it went north into Virginia through Franklin, Suffolk, Portsmouth, and NorfolktoVirginia Beach. It was cut back to Franklin in 1931 or 1932, being replaced by US 58 east of there, and soon afterwards the remainder was renumbered US 158.^[14][15]

Junction list[edit]

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Davie	Mocksville	0.0	0.0		US 64 / US 601 – Statesville, Lexington, Cooleemee, Salisbury
	​	4.8	7.7		ToI-40 / Farmington Road – Farmington
	Hillsdale	11.3	18.2		NC 801 – Farmington, Cooleemee
Forsyth	Winston-Salem	20.7	33.3		I-40 – Statesville, Greensboro
		21.7	34.9		NC 67 (Silas Creek Parkway)
		23.3	37.5	235B	US 421 north – Yadkinville	North end of US 421 overlap
		23.4	37.7	235A	North Stratford Road
		23.8	38.3	234C	Cloverdale Avenue
		24.2	38.9	234B	West First Street / Hawthorne Road	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		24.6	39.6	234A	NC 150 west (Peters Creek Parkway)	West end of NC 150 overlap
		25.0	40.2		Broad Street – BB&T Ballpark	Permanently closed as of November 2018
		25.2	40.6	233B	Cherry Street / Marshall Street	To Convention Center; Cherry Street signed indirectly from eastbound; Marshall Street signed indirectly from westbound
		25.4	40.9	233A	Main Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance; to Old Salem and Salem College
		26.0	41.8	232B-C	US 52 / NC 8 (John Gold Memorial Expressway) – Lexington, Mount Airy, Smith Reynolds Airport	NC 8 unsigned on guide signs; Smith Reynolds Airport signed as "Airport"
		26.4	42.5	232A	Martin Luther King Jr. Drive	ToWinston-Salem State University
		27.4	44.1	231	Lowery Street / Fifth Street	Eastbound Lowery Street, westbound Fifth Street
		28.3	45.5	230	US 421 south / NC 150 south – Kernersville, Greensboro	East end of NC 150 and south end of US 421 overlap Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	Walkertown	31.2	50.2		NC 74 (Winston-Salem Northern Beltway) to US 421 / NC 150	Interchange, partially opened to traffic on September 5, 2020[16][17]
		33.8	54.4		NC 66 (Old Hollow Road) – Kernersville
Guilford	Stokesdale	43.9	70.7		NC 65 (Belews Creek Road) – Walnut Cove
		44.7	71.9		NC 68 – High Point
		48.2	77.6		I-73 / US 220 – Greensboro, Summerfield, Madison
Rockingham	Reidsville	63.5	102.2		US 29 Bus. south / NC 87 south / Richardson Drive – Greensboro, Burlington	South end of US 29 Business and NC 87 overlap
		65.5	105.4		NC 65 west / NC 87 north (Harrison Street) – Wentworth, Eden	North end of NC 87 overlap
		67.4	108.5		Scales Street
		67.7	109.0		US 29 Bus. north / NC 14 north – Eden, Danville	North end of US 29 Business/NC 14 overlap
		68.3	109.9		Market Street
		70.2	113.0		US 29 – Greensboro, Danville	South end of NC 14 overlap; future I-785
Caswell	​	82.6	132.9		NC 150 west – Williamsburg	Eastern terminus of NC 150
	Yanceyville	89.0	143.2		NC 86 north – Danville	North end of NC 86 overlap
		91.0	146.5		NC 62 south (Main Street) – Burlington	South end of NC 62 overlap
		91.2	146.8		NC 62 north – Milton	North end of NC 62 overlap
	​	94.3	151.8		NC 86 south – Hillsborough	South end of NC 86 overlap
	​	98.0	157.7		NC 119 – Mebane, Semora
Person	Roxboro	110.7	178.2		NC 49 south – Haw River	South end of NC 49 overlap
		111.2	179.0		NC 57 north – Semora, Milton	North end of NC 57 overlap
		111.6	179.6		US 501 north / NC 49 north – South Boston, Virgilina	North end of US 501/NC 49 overlap
		112.2	180.6		NC 157 south (Hurdle Mills Road) – Hurdle Mills	Northern terminus of NC 157
		112.6	181.2		US 501 south / NC 57 south (Durham Road) – Durham	South end of US 501/NC 57 overlap
Granville	Oxford	135.3	217.7		US 158 Bus. east (Roxboro Road) – Oxford	Western terminus of US 158 Bus.
		135.8	218.5		NC 96 (Little Batterwhite Road) – Virgilina
		136.9	220.3		US 15 (College Street) – Clarksville
		139.8	225.0		US 158 Bus. west (Williamsboro Street)	Eastern terminus of US 158 Bus.
		140.4	226.0		I-85 – Durham, Petersburg
	​	142.1	228.7		US 158 Bus. east – Henderson	Western terminus of US 158 Bus.
Vance	Henderson	147.0	236.6	213	I-85 south – Oxford, Durham	South end of I-85 overlap
		148.2	238.5	214	NC 39 – Downtown Henderson
		149.0	239.8	215	I-85 north / US 1 Bus. south / US 158 Bus. west – Petersburg	North end of I-85 and south end of US 1 business overlap; eastern terminus of US 158 Bus.
		151.5	243.8		US 1 south – Wake Forest, Raleigh	South end of US 1 and north end of US 1 business overlap
	Middleburg	154.0	247.8		I-85 / Flemingtown Road – Henderson, Durham, Petersburg
Warren	Norlina	162.6	261.7		US 1 north / US 401 north – South Hill, Richmond	North end of US 1/US 401 overlap
		163.9	263.8		US 401 south / US 158 Bus. east – Warrenton	South end of US 401 overlap; western terminus of US 158 Bus.
	Macon	168.8	271.7		US 158 Bus. west – Warrenton	Eastern terminus of US 158 Bus.
Halifax	Littleton	179.8	289.4		NC 4 south / NC 903 north – Warrenton	North end of NC 903 overlap
	​	186.4	300.0		NC 903 south – Halifax	South end of NC 903 overlap
	Roanoke Rapids	194.4	312.9		NC 48 (Roanoke Avenue) – Brinkleyville
		195.8	315.1		NC 125 (Smith Church Road) – Halifax
		196.8	316.7		I-95 – Rocky Mount, Emporia, Richmond
	Weldon	199.0	320.3		US 301 south – Halifax, Rocky Mount	South end of US 301 overlap
Northampton	Garysburg	201.4	324.1		US 301 north – Emporia	North end of US 301 overlap
	Jackson	211.1	339.7		NC 305 north (Church Street) – Seaboard	North end of NC 305 overlap
		212.0	341.2		NC 305 south – Rich Square	South end of NC 305 overlap
	Conway	224.1	360.7		NC 35 – Severn, Woodland
	​	229.4	369.2		US 258 south / US 158 Bus. east – Murfreesboro, Woodland, Scotland Neck	South end of US 258 overlap; western terminus of US 158 Bus.
Hertford	​	232.0	373.4		US 258 north / NC 11 – Murfreesboro	North end of US 258 overlap
	​	233.3	375.5		US 158 Bus. west – Murfreesboro	Eastern terminus of US 158 Bus.
	Winton	241.2	388.2		US 13 south / NC 45 south (Mulberry Street) – Ahoskie, Winton	South end of US 13 overlap; northern terminus of NC 45
Gates	​	245.2	394.6		NC 137 east – Gatesville	Western terminus of NC 137
	Tarheel	247.8	398.8		US 13 north – Suffolk	North end of US 13 overlap
	​	253.0	407.2		US 158 Bus. east – Gatesville	Western terminus of US 158 Bus.
	​	253.9	408.6		NC 37 – Gatesville, Gates, Suffolk
	​	255.6	411.3		US 158 Bus. west – Gatesville	Eastern terminus of US 158 Bus.
	Sunbury	262.6	422.6		NC 32 – Edenton, Suffolk
Pasquotank	Morgans Corner	278.1	447.6		US 17 north – Norfolk	North end of US 17 overlap
	​	281.0	452.2	264	US 17 Byp. south – Hertford, Edenton	Northern terminus of US 17 Byp.
	Elizabeth City	288.4	464.1		US 17 Bus. south (Road Street)	Northern terminus of US 17 Bus.
		289.3	465.6		US 17 south (Hughes Boulevard) – Hertford	South end of US 17 overlap
		289.9	466.5		US 17 Bus. (Road Street)
Pasquotank River				Elizabeth City Bridge (drawbridge)
Camden	Camden	293.7	472.7		NC 343 – South Mills, Old Trap
	Belcross	295.6	475.7		NC 34 north – Norfolk	Southern terminus of NC 34
Currituck	Barco	306.2	492.8		NC 168 north – Norfolk	Southern terminus of NC 168
	​	315.0	506.9		NC 136 east – Poplar Branch	Western terminus of NC 136
Currituck Sound				Wright Memorial Bridge
Dare	Kitty Hawk	335.2	539.5		ToNC 12 – Southern Shores, Duck, Corolla, Beaches	Outbound access via SR 1493, inbound access via Virginia Dare Trail
	Nags Head	350.1	563.4		NC 12 – Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Nags Head Beaches, Hatteras Island, Ocracoke Island	Whalebone Junction
		350.2	563.6		US 64 – Manteo, Wanchese	Eastern terminus; no access to US 64 east
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Closed/former       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access

Special routes[edit]

Winston-Salem business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, was established in 1962 as a renumbering of mainline US 158 in downtown Winston-Salem. The business loop traversed on one-way streets: eastbound used Cherry Street, 4th Street, and Dunleith Street; westbound used Marshall Street and 5th Street. In 1970, it was decommissioned.^[18]

Oxford alternate route[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Alternate (US 158A), was established in 1954 as a partial bypass of Oxford. As an alternate spur route, it did not reconnect with US 158, instead going southwest to US 15. In 1971, US 158A was eliminated when Interstate 85 was built over it.^[20]

Oxford business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, established in 1994, is a 4.2-mile (6.8 km) business loop that followed the original US 158 route through downtown Oxford, via Roxboro Road, College Street, and Williamsboro Street.^[18]

The entire route is in Oxford, Granville County.

mi[21]	km	Destinations	Notes
0.0	0.0	US 158 – Roxboro, Henderson
0.7	1.1	NC 96 north (Goshen Street), Virgilina	North end of NC 96 overlap
1.2	1.9	US 15 north (College Street), Clarksville	North end of US 15 overlap
2.0	3.2	US 15 south / NC 96 south (Hillsboro Street) – Creedmoor, Wilton	South end of US 15 and NC 96 overlap
4.2	6.8	US 158 – Roxboro, Henderson
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Henderson alternate route[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Alternate (US 158A), was established in 1951, when mainline US 158 bypassed north of Henderson. US 158A followed the original route through downtown Henderson until 1960, when it was renumbered to US 158 Business.^[20]

Henderson business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, established in 1960, is a 8.5-mile (13.7 km) business loop through downtown Henderson, via Oxford Road, Dabney Drive, and Garnett Street.^[18]

County	Location	mi[22]	km	Destinations	Notes
Granville	​	0.0	0.0	US 158 – Oxford, Henderson
Vance	Henderson	6.4	10.3	US 1 Bus. south (Raleigh Road) – Louisburg	South end of US 1 business overlap
		8.5	13.7	US 158 / US 1 Bus. north – Middleburg	North end of US 1 business overlap
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Warrenton alternate route[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Alternate (US 158A), was established in 1950, when mainline US 158 bypassed north of Gatesville. US 158A followed the original route through downtown Warrenton until 1960, when it was renumbered to US 158 Business.^[20]

Warrenton business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, established in 1960, is a 7.5-mile (12.1 km) business loop through downtown Warrenton.^[18]

The entire route is in Warren County.

Location	mi[23]	km	Destinations	Notes
Norlina	0.0	0.0	US 158 / US 401 north – Norlina, Macon	North end of US 401 overlap
Warrenton	3.1	5.0	US 401 south / NC 58 (Main Street) – Louisburg	South end of US 401 and north end of NC 58 overlap
​	3.7	6.0	NC 58 south – Centerville	South end of NC 58 overlap
Macon	7.5	12.1	US 158 – Norlina, Macon
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Murfreesboro business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, established in 1996, is a 4.4-mile (7.1 km) business loop that followed the original US 158 route through downtown Murfreesboro, via Main Street.^[18]

County	Location	mi[24]	km	Destinations	Notes
Northampton	​	0.0	0.0	US 158 / US 258 – Conway, Winton, Scotland Neck
Hertford	Murfreesboro	2.8	4.5	US 258 / NC 11 south – Como, Oak City	Northern terminus of NC 11
	​	4.4	7.1	US 158 – Conway, Winton
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Gatesville alternate route[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Alternate (US 158A), was established in 1948, two years after mainline US 158 bypassed north of Gatesville. It followed the original route through downtown Gatesville. In 1960, it was renumbered to US 158 Business.^[20]

Gatesville business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, established in 1960, is a 4.9-mile (7.9 km) business loop through downtown Gatesville.^[18]

The entire route is in Gates County.

Location	mi[25]	km	Destinations	Notes
​	0.0	0.0	US 158 – Winton, Sunbury
​	1.3	2.1	NC 37 north – Gates, Suffolk	North end of NC 37 overlap
Gatesville	2.5	4.0	NC 37 south (Main Street)	South end of NC 37 overlap
​	4.9	7.9	US 158 – Winton, Sunbury
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Kill Devil Hills business loop[edit]

U.S. Route 158 Business, was established in 1960 as a renumbering of mainline US 158 on Bodie Island. In 1988, US 158 Business was decommissioned, replaced by a northern extension of NC 12.^[18]

See also[edit]

• North Carolina Bicycle Route 4 - Concurrent with US 158 at various places

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Media related to U.S. Route 158 at Wikimedia Commons
• NCRoads.com: U.S. Route 158
• NCRoads.com: U.S. Route 158-A
• NCRoads.com: U.S. Route 158 Business
• Virginia Highway Index: U.S. Route 158
• Endpoints of US Highway 158