North Carolina Highway 242
Route of NC 242 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NCDOT
Length	94.2 mi[1] (151.6 km)
Existed	1930–present
Major junctions
South end	US 76 in Cerro Gordo
Major intersections	US 74 / NC 130 near Evergreen NC 87 / US 701 in Elizabethtown US 421 near Spivey's Corner US 13 in Spivey's Corner I-95 / NC 50 in Benson US 301 / NC 27 / NC 50 in Benson
North end	I-40 near Benson
Location
Country	United States
State	North Carolina
Counties	Columbus, Bladen, Cumberland, Sampson, Johnston
Highway system
North Carolina Highway System Interstate US State Scenic
← NC 241 → NC 251

North Carolina Highway 242 (NC 242) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It traverses from Cerro Gordo to Benson, connecting the towns of Bladenboro, Elizabethtown, and Roseboro.

Route description

NC 242 is a 94.2-mile (151.6 km) long rural highway that goes from US 76 in Cerro Gordo, to I-40, near Benson. It passes through Columbus, Bladen, Cumberland, Sampson and Johnston Counties. Some major cities, and towns it goes through are Cerro Gordo, Bladenboro, Elizabethtown, Roseboro, Spiveys Corner and Benson.

Although it passes through the southeastern tip of Cumberland County, it never goes near Fayetteville.

History

NC 242 was established in 1930 as a new primary route between NC 24, in Roseboro, and NC 60, in Beamans Crossroads.^[2] In 1937, NC 242 was extended south as new primary routing to US 701/NC 41/NC 53, near Elizabethtown. In 1940, NC 242 was rerouted at Salemburg north to US 421, its old alignment became Odom Road (SR 1323).^[3] Around 1946, NC 242 was extended southwest as new primary routing to NC 410, in Bladenboro. In 1948, NC 242 was extended to its current southern terminus at US 76, in Cerro Gordo.^[4] In 1952, NC 242 was extended north to NC 50, in Benson.^[5] In 1988, NC 242 was extended north, through Benson, to its current northern terminus at I-40.^[6]

Major intersections

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Columbus	Cerro Gordo	0.0	0.0	US 76 / Powell Street – Chadbourn, Fair Bluff	Southern terminus
	Evergreen	5.6	9.0	US 74 / NC 130 – Whiteville, Lumberton	Future I-74
Bladen	​	16.9	27.2	NC 410 south – Chadbourn	South end of NC 410 overlap
	Bladenboro	19.2	30.9	NC 131 south (Whiteville Road) / White Street – Whiteville	South end of NC 131 overlap
		19.8	31.9	NC 211 Bus. (Seaboard Street)
		19.9	32.0	NC 131 north / NC 410 north (Main Street) – Dublin	North end of NC 131 / NC 410 overlap
	​	21.0	33.8	NC 211 (CDR Frank Elkins Memorial Highway) – Clarkton, Lumberton
	​	31.1	50.1	US 701 south – Whiteville	South end of US 701 overlap
	​	31.3	50.4	NC 87 – Fayetteville, Southport
	Elizabethtown	33.2	53.4	NC 41 south / NC 87 Bus. (Broad Street) – Fayetteville, Southport	South end of NC 41 overlap
	Sutton's Corner	34.5	55.5	US 701 north / NC 41 north / NC 53 east – White Lake	North end of US 701 / NC 41 and south end of NC 53 overlap
		34.6	55.7	NC 53 west – Fayetteville	North end of NC 53 overlap
Cumberland	​	51.8	83.4	NC 210 – Fayetteville, Moores Creek
Sampson	​	57.3	92.2	NC 411 east – Garland	Western terminus of NC 411
	Roseboro	59.0	95.0	NC 24 (Fayetteville Highway) – Fayetteville, Clinton
	​	72.7	117.0	US 421 south – Clinton	South end of US 421 overlap
	Spivey's Corner	76.7	123.4	US 13 – Fayetteville, Goldsboro
		77.7	125.0	US 421 north – Dunn	North end of US 421 overlap
Johnston	McKoy	81.5	131.2	NC 55 (Harnett-Dunn Highway) – Dunn, Newton Grove
	Benson	90.2	145.2	I-95 to I-40 / NC 50 south (Main Street) – Newton Grove, Dunn, Smithfield	South end of NC 50 overlap
		90.9	146.3	US 301 south (Wall Street) / NC 27 west / NC 50 north (Main Street) – Campbell University	North end of NC 50 and south end of US 301 overlap
		91.5	147.3	US 301 north (Wall Street) – Four Oaks, Smithfield	North end of US 301 overlap
	​	94.2	151.6	I-40 – Wilmington, Raleigh	Northern terminus
				Woodall Dairy Road	Continuation beyond I-40
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

Special routes

Roseboro truck route

North Carolina Highway 242 Truck (NC 242 Truck) is a short 1-mile-long (1.6 km) truck route through Roseboro, via Pinewood Street and East Street.^[7]

Roseboro alternate spur

North Carolina Highway 242 Alternate (NC 242A) was established in 1939 as a new alternate spur, creating a cutoff between NC 242 and NC 24, in Roseboro. It is unclear when NC 242A was decommissioned, from its still appearing on Sampson County maps as late as 1968, to links of missing documents located on NCDOT's website, indicated it may have been as late as 1977.^[9] Today it is East Roseboro Street.