Traffic shifts show stronger Morganton-Lenoir link

Traffic between Morganton and Lenoir has surged over the past decade, adding thousands of vehicles a day to U.S. 64-N.C. 18 and strengthening a transportation link between Burke and Caldwell counties.

At the same time, traffic has fallen sharply along some longtime commercial corridors, including Carbon City Road in Morganton and older routes through Lenoir.

North of Kirksey Drive in Morganton, average daily traffic increased by 5,600 vehicles between 2015 and 2025, the largest increase identified in the Morganton area. Traffic south of Piedmont Road on the same corridor increased by 4,100 vehicles per day.

Meanwhile, traffic on Carbon City Road east of Old Jamestown Road fell by 5,500 vehicles per day over the same decade.

The contrasting trends are among the findings in the fall Economic Indicators Newsletter published by the Western Piedmont Workforce Development Board. The report examines traffic, employment and tax data across the four-county Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton metropolitan area.

Traffic counts are not a direct measure of economic growth, but the report notes that changes in vehicle volume can reflect commuting patterns, commercial and industrial development, retail activity and changes in transportation networks.

The growth along U.S. 64-N.C. 18 continued in recent years.

Between 2023 and 2025, traffic north of Kirksey Drive increased by another 1,500 vehicles per day, while the count south of Piedmont Road increased by 1,000.

The report attributed some of the growth to increased commuting between Morganton and Lenoir.

On the Caldwell County side, U.S. 64-N.C. 18 west of Virginia Street in Lenoir gained 3,000 vehicles per day between 2023 and 2025.

Together, the increases show a strengthening transportation link between the two counties even as their traditional major highways continue to carry the heaviest traffic.

In Burke County, Interstate 40 remains the dominant artery.

The county’s highest 2025 count was 48,000 vehicles per day between the Old N.C. 10 and Hildebran exits. Several other stretches between Valdese and Hildebran carried between 47,000 and 48,000 vehicles per day.

In the Morganton area, I-40 carried 47,000 vehicles per day between Bethel Road and the N.C. 114 exit at Drexel and 46,500 between Burkemont Avenue and Enola Road.

In Caldwell County, U.S. 321 fills a similar role.

All 12 locations in the county with traffic counts above 25,000 vehicles per day in 2025 were along U.S. 321 between Lenoir and the Catawba River.

The highest count was 38,500 vehicles per day north of Grace Chapel Road, south of Granite Falls. Traffic topped 30,000 vehicles per day at multiple locations through Granite Falls, Hudson and Lenoir.

The corridor also recorded some of Caldwell County’s strongest recent growth.

From 2023 to 2025, traffic on U.S. 321 south of Lower Cedar Valley Road in Granite Falls increased by 3,000 vehicles per day. Other sections around Granite Falls, Hudson and Lenoir added between 2,000 and 2,500 vehicles per day.

Over the longer term, traffic also increased north of Lenoir toward Blowing Rock. One location on U.S. 321 south of U.S. 321 Business gained 4,300 vehicles per day between 2015 and 2025.

TRAFFIC DECLINES ON OLDER CORRIDORS

While traffic is increasing along those major regional routes, some older corridors are losing vehicles.

In Burke County, Carbon City Road east of Old Jamestown Road recorded the largest decline identified in the Morganton area, dropping by 5,500 vehicles per day between 2015 and 2025.

The same location lost another 3,500 vehicles per day between 2023 and 2025. Portions of West Fleming Drive and Burkemont Avenue also recorded declines.

In Caldwell County, traffic on U.S. 321-N.C. 90 west of Nuway Circle in Lenoir declined by 6,500 vehicles per day between 2015 and 2025.

Declines also occurred on U.S. 321 Alternate in Hudson, Connelly Springs Road, Southwest Boulevard, and U.S. 64-N.C. 18-N.C. 90 in Lenoir.

Those shifts can carry implications beyond transportation. Sustained changes in traffic volume can affect decisions about retail locations, commercial development and infrastructure investment.

TAX COLLECTIONS INCREASE

The transportation changes come as state gross tax collections are also rising in both counties.

In Burke County, collections increased from about $56.2 million in 2023 to $59.3 million in 2025, a gain of more than $3.1 million.

Caldwell County posted a larger increase, with collections rising from about $45.3 million to $52.7 million during the same period, a jump of more than $7.3 million.

Taken together, the numbers show an increasingly concentrated regional traffic pattern: I-40 remains Burke County’s dominant artery, U.S. 321 serves that role in Caldwell County, and U.S. 64-N.C. 18 is becoming a significantly busier link between Morganton and Lenoir.