GREENSBORO, N.C. — Years of waiting have come to an end. The last four miles of the Greensboro Urban Loop opened Monday.
It completed a 49-mile circle around the city. NCDOT said the finished highway will cut down on traffic and travel time.
WFMY News 2 took a drive to find out how much time it really saves.
There are a seemingly endless number of routes you could take using the loop. For the sake of this test, we compared it to a familiar drive for those who live on the North side of the city.
Before the loop, traveling East to West often meant driving down Battleground and Wendover Avenues. Both of those roads have a lot of stoplights.
We decided to measure the difference between taking that Wendover to Battleground route and taking the loop instead.
We started at the Eastern end of the Urban Loop, traveling west from Wendover Avenue.
For the test, we drove the speed limit on all roads.
Along the way, you pass exits for US-29, Yanceyville Street, Elm Street, and Lawndale Drive. We reached Battleground Avenue in just under 11 minutes.
Next, we timed how long it took to travel from the North end of Battleground Avenue back to the Eastern end of Wendover Avenue.
We made it to the Battleground-Wendover interchange in just under nine minutes. At the 11-minute mark, we had only reached the intersection of Wendover Avenue and Church Street.
We reached the Eastern end of the Urban Loop in about 19 minutes driving this route. It was about an eight-minute difference in drive time, so the loop does take about half the time.
Keep in mind, travel time may vary based on the number of cars on the road.