I-40 from Raleigh to Wilmington: a trucker's corridor guide

The short version

From the I-440 split in Raleigh (Exit 301) to the end of I-40 at Wilmington (Exit 420) is about 119 miles, by our math from the exit numbers. It runs through Wake, Johnston, Sampson, Duplin, Pender and New Hanover counties. [1][16]

Traffic is heavy in Raleigh and Garner, about halves at the I-95 junction near Benson, and is lightest through Sampson and northern Duplin, per NCDOT's 2024 counts. [16]

There are only two public rest areas on the stretch, at mile marker 324 in Johnston County and 364 in Duplin County. After Duplin, there is none for the last 56 miles or so. [4]

Flooding is the big storm risk. After Florence in 2018, floodwater closed I-40 in Duplin and Pender counties for about nine days. [20]

Everything here is as of October 2026. Check DriveNC for current closures and work zones before you roll. [4]

Key exits, west to east

Exit 301 is the I-440, I-87 and US 64 split in southeast Raleigh. Eastbound, it's a left exit. Exit 303, Jones Sausage Road, became a diverging diamond in 2023. [1][2]

Exit 309 is now I-42 east toward Smithfield and Goldsboro. NCDOT renumbered that stretch of US 70 in February 2025. Exit 310 is the eastern end of toll NC 540, which reached I-40 near Garner in September 2024. [3][1][27]

Exit 312 is NC 36, the road that was NC 42 until the 2025 renumbering. NCDOT made the change to end 911 confusion over two roads called highway 42. Some NCDOT pages and older GPS maps still say NC 42. [3][2]

The same change turned US 70 Business between I-40 and I-42 back into US 70. If your paperwork says US 70 Business near Clayton, it means the same road. [3]

Exit 328 is I-95. On I-95 that junction is Exit 81, so don't mix up the two numbers when giving directions. [1][6]

Farther east: Exit 341 at Newton Grove (NC 50/NC 55), Exit 364 at NC 24 for Warsaw and Clinton, Exit 373 for Kenansville, Exits 384 and 385 at Wallace, Exit 398 at NC 53 for Burgaw, and Exit 416 for I-140. [1][16]

Exit 420 is the end. I-40 becomes US 117/NC 132, College Road, heading south through Wilmington. [1]

Traffic: where it's heavy and where it isn't

NCDOT's 2024 counts, released in September 2025, show about 147,000 vehicles a day between Exits 301 and 303. That was 115,000 in 2019. [16]

Volumes fall fast heading east: about 71,500 a day near NC 540, 54,500 past Clayton and 48,000 just before I-95. [16]

East of I-95 the count drops to about 25,000. Through Sampson and northern Duplin it runs around 21,500 to 23,000, the quietest part of the drive. [16]

Traffic builds again from Burgaw south: about 29,000 near Rocky Point, 34,000 near Castle Hayne and 43,500 between I-140 and the end. [16]

These counts cover all vehicles. NCDOT's 2024 layer doesn't split out trucks, so we can't say how many are big rigs. [16]

Work zones as of October 2026

The I-40 widening from Raleigh to Clayton is done. NCDOT lists it as completed in 2024, with diverging diamonds at Exits 303 and 312. WRAL reported five lanes each way and a cost of about $400 million. [2][5]

The big job nearby is on I-95. NCDOT is widening about 9 miles from Exit 71 to Exit 81, the I-40 junction, from four lanes to eight. As of May 2026, it is due to finish in late spring 2028. [7]

That project has closed ramps at Benson's Exit 79 at times this year. NCDOT's truck detours used US 301 and Exit 77, so check before you route through Benson. [7][8][9]

Johnston County's April 2026 briefing from NCDOT listed no I-40 mainline project. We also found no 2026 NCDOT release for I-40 work from Benson to Wilmington, though short-term paving can pop up. [10]

At the Wilmington end, NCDOT says widening of Gordon Road, from I-40 to Market Street, is under way. A new interchange at College Road and MLK Parkway is proposed, with no schedule on NCDOT's page. [11][12]

Lane rules, scales and parking

NCDOT's truck restriction table, dated March 2024, bars big trucks from the left lane on I-40 only west of Raleigh. It lists no I-40 left-lane truck rule in Johnston, Sampson, Duplin, Pender or New Hanover. [15]

Near the end, the same table bans through trucks on parts of Market Street, South Third Street and US 421 in Wilmington. Stay on College Road or MLK Parkway unless you are delivering there. [15]

There's no Highway Patrol weigh station on I-40 east of Hillsborough, per the patrol's list of eight permanent stations. [25]

The Johnston County rest areas at mile marker 324, about 3 miles north of Benson, have 15 truck spaces in each direction. DriveNC showed both open on Oct. 10, 2026. [4]

The Duplin County rest area at mile marker 364 sits in the median at the NC 24 exit near Warsaw. It has 10 truck spaces serving both directions. DriveNC showed no status for it on Oct. 10. [4]

Our tip: if you need a legal break, plan it at Benson or Warsaw. DriveNC lists no public rest area in Pender or New Hanover counties or on I-140. [4]

Flood spots and hurricane season

Florence flooded two stretches of I-40 on Sept. 15, 2018: mile markers 373 to 385 and 408 to 414. NCDOT reopened the road on Sept. 24, with one lane near mile marker 413 still closed. [20]

NCDOT's 2021 flood study, written after Matthew and Florence, said both storms flooded I-40 and I-95 for up to a week or more and cut Wilmington off by road. [17]

The study named seven low spots on I-40 between Benson and Wilmington, near mile markers 358, 368, 371, 387, 398, 413 and 416. It priced fixing them at about $169.6 million. [17]

That was a feasibility study, not a funded project. We found no record that any of those spots has been raised, so treat them as still at risk. [17][18]

I-40 is a coastal evacuation route. An FHWA report says North Carolina had never used contraflow and that it is no longer used on I-40, so don't count on extra lanes leaving the coast. [26]

Our tip: after heavy rain or a storm, check DriveNC for closures between Warsaw and Castle Hayne before you dispatch a Wilmington load. [4][17]

From the end of I-40 to the port and Brunswick County

For Brunswick County, Leland or US 17 south, take Exit 416 to I-140. It is a 25.4-mile northern bypass to US 17 near Winnabow, finished in December 2017, and it skips downtown Wilmington and the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge. [1][29]

For the port, I-40 ends at Exit 420 and becomes College Road (US 117/NC 132) heading south. The container South Gate is at 1 Shipyard Boulevard. [1][22]

When the Memorial Bridge deck was rebuilt in 2024, about 300 to 700 container trucks a day were detoured by MLK Jr. Parkway, South College Road and Shipyard Boulevard. Port City Daily reported signs sent truckers to College Road. [28]

Our tip: that College Road and Shipyard Boulevard path is a good one to know. It avoids the downtown streets where NCDOT's table bans through trucks. [15][28]

Freight along the way

Sampson and Duplin counties, both on this stretch, are North Carolina's top two counties for farm cash receipts, at about $2.19 billion and $2.00 billion in the 2022 Census of Agriculture. [24]

No other county comes close. Wayne County is third at about $798 million. [24]

At the end of the road, the Port of Wilmington sits at 2202 Burnett Blvd. NC Ports says it has direct access to I-40 and I-95. [21]

As of October 2026, the container terminal runs 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, with a 5:30 p.m. last receiving time for containers. Reefers close at 5 p.m., with a final cutoff at 4:30 p.m. [22]

Container trucks use the South Gate. General cargo uses the North Gate, where you need a TWIC card or an escort. [22]

Port hours change, so call the South Gate office at (910) 746-6488 before a late run. [22]