Great Smoky Mountains Expressway | |
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Route information | |
Maintained by NCDOT | |
Length | 43.0 mi[1] (69.2 km) |
Existed | September 16, 1983[2]–present |
Component highways |
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Major junctions | |
West end | US 19 / US 74 near Bryson City |
East end | I-40 / US 74 near Clyde |
Location | |
Country | United States |
State | North Carolina |
Counties | Swain, Jackson, Haywood |
Highway system | |
The Great Smoky Mountains Expressway is a four-lane divided highway that serves as the main east–west corridor through Southwestern North Carolina; connecting the towns of Bryson City, Sylva and Waynesville to Interstate 40. Its establishment and funding was made possible by the Appalachian Development Highway System (ADHS), designed to generate economic development in previously isolated areas, supplement the interstate system and provide access to areas within the region as well as to markets in the rest of the nation.