Cary Parkway to be widened at High House Road

CARY, North Carolina (WTVD) -- One of the busiest intersections in western Wake County is about to get a facelift.

The junction of Cary Parkway and High House Road sees about 55,000 people coming through every day.

"If you get a car broken down, then it's backed up for miles, particularly at rush hour," said resident Cindy Sinkez.

At an open house Tuesday night, the Town of Cary showed off plans to add more turn lanes to ease the congestion.

"Every approach is going to have a dedicated right turn lane added," explained Acting Transportation and Facilities Director Jerry Jenson.

And they're going to add a second left turn lane to all roads except for the southbound direction on Cary Parkway.

Construction will start in the fall and is estimated to last six months to a year.

Businesses around the intersection are bracing for the impact of the construction.

"It's going to hurt, you know" offered Antonio Mata, owner of Fiesta Mexicana.

He and other business owners in the area say they believe the project will be good in the end, but during construction it may be trouble.

"I hope our customers keep coming because we're going to be open anyway and be waiting for them," he said.

To help, Jenson says construction will continue at night during the week and there will be no lane closures during rush hour.

Other improvements will include upgraded traffic signal poles, decorative street and pedestrian lighting, and new meandering sidewalks.