Interstate 74 in North Carolina

Southern terminus of the Mount Airy segment of I-74. Pilot Mountain can be seen in the background.

The first section of I-74 begins at the Virginia state line (overlapped with I-77 for approximately four miles [6.4 km]). After separation, it goes east and connects to US 52 near Mount Airy, where the first section ends.

I-74 is to be routed along US 52 from Mount Airy to Bethania, where it will then separate onto the new Winston-Salem Northern Beltway and go east around Winston-Salem before connecting to existing I-74 south of Kernersville. Under a new accelerated construction plan for the Beltway, right-of-way acquisition began in 2012 and construction started in December 2014. Until construction is completed, travelers wanting to connect between the first and second section of I-74 should stay on US 52 through downtown Winston-Salem and then take I-40 east to I-74 east toward High Point.[6]

I-73/I-74/US 220, near Asheboro

The second section of I-74 extends from the intersection with I-40 in southeastern Winston-Salem to High Point. Until January 2019, this section of I-74 was concurrent with US 311. This section was designated despite not having 10-foot (3.0 m) shoulders, with the promise that shoulders would be widened later. Signs were installed by August 2014. This section connects directly to another section,[7] called the High Point East Belt. It connects High Point with both I-85 Bus. and I-85. Construction completed on June 7, 2013, extended the freeway an additional eight miles (13 km) to US 220/I-73 at milemarker 86 in Randleman. The highway was originally to be completed by October 2012.[8]

I-74 joins with I-73/US 220 south in Randleman going south to Asheboro. The freeway is already completed but was not allowed to be signed as a full Interstate until the segment through Asheboro was upgraded to Interstate Highway standards in December 2013. The fourth section of I-74 (and I-73) starts along a bypass of Asheboro where a project to improve US 220 to Interstate standards was completed, and Interstate signs went up in 2012.[7][9]

I-74 continues concurrently with I-73 and US 220 between I-73 milemarkers 68–42 (26 miles (42 km)), the first section marked as I-74 (and I-73) in North Carolina in 1997. It continues south, bypassing the towns of Seagrove, Biscoe, and Candor. Visitor centers (completed in 2010) are located eastbound and westbound at milemarker 61.[10] After exit 41, US 220 leaves the freeway and the route continues as I-73/I-74 for another 16 miles (26 km) toward Rockingham. Though this part of I-73/I-74 was completed in 2008 and is up to Interstate standards, it was initially signed as a future Interstate route because it had not been accepted into the Interstate Highway System by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) by the time it was opened, necessitating the posting of future shields. This situation was remedied on July 7, 2011, when the FHWA approved the addition of this segment to the Interstate Highway System.[11] The route was finally signed as I-73 and I-74 in the fall of 2013.

I-73/I-74/US 220, near Biscoe

In late 2018, this segment was extended by 2.91 miles (4.68 km), from US 220/Haywood Cemetery Road to a partially completed trumpet interchange on US 220 north of Rockingham. A bypass under construction will extend this stretch to the US 74 bypass south of Rockingham.

At Rockingham, Future I-73 and I-74 will separate from current US 220 along a to-be-built bypass around the west of the city and then join the existing US 74 bypass freeway, which goes south around Rockingham and Hamlet. The first section of the bypass, four miles (6.4 km) of upgraded US 220, is under construction with a planned completion date of March 2018. Future I-73 ends near the NC 38 exit where it is planned to be routed south into South Carolina. Future I-74 continues to the end of the freeway. Between Hamlet and Laurinburg is an at-grade expressway that will eventually be upgraded to Interstate standards. At Laurinburg, I-74 is to use the Laurinburg Bypass that was at the standard North Carolina freeway grade and signed as I-74 in 2008; however, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) had to remove the signage the following year when the FHWA ruled against using them until the freeway was up to Interstate standards.

The third section of I-74 is officially named the American Indian Highway; completed in 2008, this 19-mile (31 km) section stretches from Maxton to south of Lumberton, connecting with I-95/US 301.[12] After NC 41, I-74 ends for the final time as the highway continues on as an at-grade expressway signed as US 74/Future I-74 Corridor.

I-74/US 74 near the intersection with I-95 in Lumberton

Future I-74 is to continue to follow US 74, going through the city of Whiteville and bypassing the town of Lake Waccamaw. While there are no funded projects to upgrade the entire highway to Interstate standards, NCDOT is funding several smaller projects to replace intersections with interchanges for several of the remaining cross streets, including for NC 72/NC 130 north of Boardman, and replacing other intersections with grade separations, such as with Old US 74 near Evergreen, over the next 10 years. Before the town of Bolton, it will separate from US 74 onto a proposed new freeway toward Shallotte, then go west on the proposed extension of South Carolina Highway 31 (SC 31, Carolina Bays Parkway) into South Carolina. This entire section of I-74 is still under a feasibility study with several possible routing options; it thus may take years before reaching South Carolina. Current NCDOT plans suggest that construction may not begin until after 2020 and that this will likely be the last section of I-74 to be completed.[13][14]

An interchange at Boardman Road has begun construction starting May 25, 2021, and is scheduled for completion in 2024. Another interchange at NC 72/NC 130 is due to start in 2022. A third project, now combined, would build an interchange at Chauncey Town Road (SR 1735) and a overpass at Old Lake Road (SR 1740) starting in 2025 for an estimated cost of $30 million for both projects. This would almost build a completed freeway to the NC 211 interchange in Bolton with two exceptions: an at-grade intersection at US 74/Creek Road (SR 2225) that would need to be closed and one minor crossing that would be deleted.

Though the highway is commonly known as I-74 throughout the state, the highway does have other known names it uses locally in areas.

• American Indian Highway—official name of the 19-mile (31 km) section of I-74 in Robeson County (milemarkers 191–213). It is named to honor the large American Indian population in Robeson County.[12]
• Blue Star Memorial Highway—unofficial North Carolina honorary name of I-74 in Randolph County (dedicated on June 7, 2013).[15][16]
• High Point East Belt—road name in Guilford County.

On September 26, 2008, a 19-mile (31 km) section of I-74/US 74 was opened between Maxton to NC 41 near Lumberton, known as the American Indian Highway. The Laurinburg Bypass was also resigned I-74/US 74 at the same time. By the middle of the following year, the Laurinburg Bypass was removed of its I-74 designation by NCDOT after a ruling from the FHWA (it was resigned as a Future I-74 Corridor). The reason was that the section, though a freeway by North Carolina standards, it was not up to Interstate standards. It was also at this same time that NCDOT fixed an exit number error along milemarkers 181–191.

North Carolina Highway 752 (NC 752) was the designation of the four-lane limited-access highway that traversed from I-77 to NC 89, near Pine Ridge. Established in 1994, it was a one-mile (1.6 km) freeway spur. In 1998, the freeway was extended to US 601 and was renumbered as I-74. Its short four-year existence was simply to be a placeholder for I-74.

The Winston-Salem Northern Beltway is an under construction freeway loop around the North Carolina city of Winston-Salem. The western section has been designated as NC 452, which will later become I-274 when completed, and the eastern section of the beltway is designated as NC 74, which will later become part of I-74 when completed.[34][35]

On September 7, 2011, North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue announced that construction of a part of the eastern leg of the beltway would begin in 2014. The section to be built connects US 158 to I-40 Bus. (now US 421/Salem Parkway). Right-of-way acquisition began in 2012 and cost $34 million (equivalent to $38.6 million in 2020[36]); construction was estimated to cost $156 million.[37][38] Construction on the segment, Project U-2579B; commenced in December 2014,[6][38] with an anticipated completion date of November 2018. However, after delays, including an opening date of late 2019,[35] it was finally opened to traffic on September 5, 2020.[39]

Since then, funding has been allocated to complete the remaining sections of NC 74 between US 52 and the current I-74 (formerly cosigned with US 311), starting with the segment between US 311 and US 158, known as Project U-2579C; in October 2017. Construction on this segment began in 2018, this section has since opened to traffic effective December 23, 2020.[40]

That same year, a contract for the segment between NC 66 and US 311, Projects U-2579D, U-2579E, and U-2579F; was awarded. Actual construction began April 2019 and is scheduled to be completed in September 2021.[40][35] Next, construction on the segments between I-74 and US 421/Salem Parkway, Projects U-2579AA and U-2579AB; are scheduled to begin in 2020[40][6] and will open in 2024.[35] Construction on the interchange with US 52, which began in 2019,[41] is scheduled to be completed in September 2022.[35]

A western bypass of Rockingham is planned, beginning at the partially-built trumpet interchange with US 220 where I-73 and I-74 currently end and running southwest to the trumpet interchange between US 74 and US 74 Bus., which will be reconfigured to accommodate the new bypass. Construction was initially scheduled for 2026 but was rescheduled for late 2019 and is planned to last three years, costing $146.1 million.[42][43] Upon completion of the bypass, I-74 will be designated along its length and along US 74 around Rockingham and Hamlet, terminating east of Hamlet at US 74 Bus.[44] The bypass will also carry I-73, which will terminate at the interchange with US 74 west of Rockingham until the section of I-73 extending into South Carolina is completed.[44]