A 1.3-mile section of Fayetteville Road will be improved with extra travel and turn lanes, a raised median and a new roundabout.

The work will stretch from East 22nd Street to Farringdom Street. The five-lane portion of this stretch will be widened into six lanes separated by a concrete median for safety.

Additionally, the left turn lanes in either direction from Fayetteville Road onto North Roberts Avenue will be eliminated; instead, drivers wishing to go left will use a widened Boomerang Drive to access North Roberts Avenue.

Eliminating those left turns will reduce delays for the majority of the traffic traveling through this intersection.

Barnhill Contracting Co. of Rocky Mount can proceed with this project in April, after the N.C. Department of Transportation awarded the $39 million contract.

The City of Lumberton has approved NCDOT’s plans for improving this corridor, which carries an average of 27,000 vehicles a day near its intersection with North Roberts Avenue.

Other contract highlights include:

• Constructing a roundabout at East 24th Street and Fayetteville Road to improve safety and traffic flow
• Restriping the section between North Roberts Avenue and East 24th Street into one travel lane in each direction, separated by a center left-turn lane
• Resurfacing the affected roadways
• Installing or replacing concrete curbs and gutters on these roads

Barnhill will have until the summer of 2030 to complete all of the improvements.