Pittsboro Works to Divert 15-501 Route Away From Downtown

Travelers in Chatham County can now see some new signs for U.S. 15-501 prior to reaching downtown Pittsboro.

The town has worked for years to get the designation of 15-501 diverted away from downtown Pittsboro and the historic Chatham County Courthouse Circle. In the last month, the North Carolina Department of Transportation put up the signs to officially complete the change.

“We are trying to get trucks out of downtown,” Pittsboro Mayor Kyle Shipp told 97.9 The Hill. “Obviously that means the trucks have to go somewhere else.”

Southbound travelers will be directed onto NC Highway 64 West toward Siler City, then take the NC Highway 87 South exit toward Pittsboro, where they will rejoin with U.S. 15-501 just south of downtown.

“I think there are a lot of advantages for a lot of town,” Shipp said about the change, “[like] the events that we do and businesses downtown. This is something we started about five years ago, and now we can see the physical progress of that.”

It is part of a larger effort to reimagine the downtown area as Pittsboro continues to grow. In 2023, the town’s board of commissioners created a downtown social district to encourage foot traffic and promote the downtown’s economy. Last year, the town earned the “Main Street Community” designation and won awards for their downtown improvements. In May, the town board finalized an interlocal agreement with Chatham County to consolidate control of about 20 parcels of county property for future development.

“We’ve been working together with a consultant, and they are going to help us look at that property,” Shipp wrote to Chapelboro. “What the uses are, if we should keep it, or put it up for sale….and then we will create a long-term plan for those properties.”

While the signs redirecting travelers around downtown are now a reality, the town still has a few steps to complete.

“The signs are all changed,” Shipp said, “but we are still working on the official truck-route designation and some ordinances around enforcement of that.”

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