A group of residents living along South River Road in Jackson County say they’ve noticed an uptick in the number of speeders and commercial vehicles along the rural two-lane, and they’re asking the N.C. Department of Transportation to do something about it. 

Though the roads were slick from heavy rainstorms on Tuesday morning, I momentarily couldn’t figure out why my truck was pushing back against my gas pedal on the short drive from my apartment to The Smoky Mountain News office in downtown Waynesville. 

The price tag on a project to install sidewalks along Skyland Drive in Sylva has more than doubled, with town commissioners voting July 11 to allocate an additional $175,000 for the endeavor. 

After putting nearly 300 hours and just short of a year toward an effort to develop an alternative vision for the N.C. 107 project in Sylva, the Asheville Design Center presented its findings to the Sylva Board of Commissioners Thursday, July 11. 

For a road that has never existed, the infamous Southern Loop of Sylva sure has gotten a lot of ink over the past 20 years. 

Development of a plan to guide Cullowhee’s future is now underway, with a three-day marathon of activities held April 22-24 gathering feedback from the community toward a draft small area plan for the community. 

There are a number of reasons to walk or bike to work, to play or to shop — saving money on gasoline, experiencing the health benefits of regular physical activity, or just a general desire to stop and smell the roses — but that’s especially so in the compact, walkable communities that dot much of Western North Carolina. 

The Asheville Design Center will soon complete its final recommendations for the N.C 107 project in Sylva, but the document is unlikely to provide any drastic departure from the plan already put forward by the N.C. Department of Transportation. 

The Asheville Design Center will present its findings on alternatives to the current plan for N.C. 107 in Sylva during a community meeting 5:30 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 17, at the Jackson County Public Library. 

Cleaning a rockslide on Interstate 40 near the Tennessee State lane will require the N.C. Department of Transportation to keep the interstate closed about one week for the safety of contract workers and those who would be driving in the area.