The Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville market doesn't have one signature killer highway the way some metros do. It has several: the interstate loops ringing Raleigh, the interstates cutting through Durham, and a stretch of Cliffdale Road in Fayetteville that federal crash data ranks as the deadliest road segment in North Carolina. If you regularly drive I-40, I-440, I-85, or the arterials feeding them, you're sharing pavement with some of the state's highest crash concentrations, according to state transportation data and each city's own safety plans.
Wake County's interstate interchanges carry the heaviest crash loads
In the first half of 2025, the intersection of I-40 and State Road 1002 (Aviation Parkway) recorded 44 crashes, more than any other state-maintained intersection in Wake County, according to NCDOT data reported by WRAL1. NCDOT's count includes any crash within 150 feet of the intersection1. Rounding out the top ten: I-440 at Capital Boulevard (41 crashes), I-440 at Glenwood Avenue (38), I-440 at Wake Forest Road (37), I-40 at Saunders Street (36), I-540 at Capital Boulevard (36), Brier Creek Parkway at Glenwood Avenue (34), I-440 at Lake Boone Trail (33), Glenwood Avenue at TW Alexander Road (30), and NC 55 at Judd Parkway (29)1.
NCDOT and the City of Raleigh have work underway at several of these. An auxiliary lane is planned on I-40 between Harrison Avenue and Aviation Parkway. I-440 at Glenwood Avenue is getting a signal upgrade with new pedestrian heads and crosswalks. I-440 at Wake Forest Road is slated for a full interchange rebuild, though construction isn't expected to start until 2029. I-540 at Capital Boulevard is getting a full interchange reconstruction1. NCDOT points to Old South Road at Penny Road as proof the approach works: crashes there fell 91% after the intersection was redesigned1.
Raleigh's surface streets are worse for anyone outside a car
Interstates rack up the crash volume, but Raleigh's most dangerous intersection for drivers is a signalized surface crossing: Buffaloe Road at New Hope Road, ranked 23rd worst in the state by NCDOT, where limited sightlines lead to frequent left-turn collisions2. For pedestrians and cyclists, the worst intersection in Raleigh, and in all of North Carolina, is Capital Boulevard at Calvary Drive2. The Raleigh City Council is now pricing out fixes for 21 intersections the city has flagged as dangerous2.
The scale of the problem shows up in the city's own figures. Raleigh logged more than 19,000 crashes in 2023, with 41 deaths3. Between 2019 and 2023 the city recorded 185 fatal crashes and 905 serious-injury crashes4. Speeding was a factor in more than 54% of those fatal crashes, and 71% of vehicle occupants killed weren't wearing a seatbelt4. Raleigh's City Council adopted a Comprehensive Safety Action Plan in April 2026 targeting a 50% cut in fatal and serious-injury crashes by 2040, with zero as the eventual goal by 20554. NCDOT has already funded six safety projects in the city totaling $2.5 million over the past year4.
Durham's interstates and its High Injury Network
Durham County's worst intersection is I-40 at NC 55, with 28 crashes between January and July of 2025 alone5. The rest of the county's top ten: I-85 at Avondale Drive (25), I-85 at Roxboro Street (23), NC 54 at NC 55 (23), I-85 at Guess Road (21), I-40 at Page Road (19), I-40 at Fayetteville Road (19), I-885 at Holloway Street (17), NC 54 at Fayetteville Road (17), and a three-way tie at 16 crashes apiece: I-85 at Hillandale Road, NC 147 at Alston Avenue, and I-40 at NC 455.
Fixes in progress include a third southbound lane and ramp upgrades where I-40 meets NC 55, a four-lane widening of NC 147 at Alston Avenue with a railroad bridge replacement, and a bike-and-pedestrian project planned for I-85 at Guess Road5.
Durham was one of the first North Carolina cities to adopt Vision Zero, back in September 20176. Roughly 23 people die in Durham traffic crashes every year, and the city's own analysis found that just 10% of its roads, about 130 centerline miles, produce 74% of its fatal and serious-injury crashes. Durham calls that subset its High Injury Network6. The city's first Vision Zero Action Plan, covering 2025 through 2029, sets a goal of cutting deaths and serious injuries in half by 2035 and reaching zero by 20456.
Fayetteville's Cliffdale Road and Cumberland County's toll
No corridor in this market carries a worse reputation than Cliffdale Road in Fayetteville. An analysis of NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System covering 2018 through 2020 found that the 4.9-mile stretch of Cliffdale Road between Beverly Drive and Lansdowne Road produced 10 fatal crashes and 11 deaths, more than any other road segment tracked in North Carolina during that period7.
Fayetteville's own crash data backs up the concern. The city's Comprehensive Safety Action Plan documents 675 fatal and serious-injury crashes across all travel modes between 2019 and 2023. Just 8% of the city's road miles produced about 76% of those crashes, and just 2% of its intersections produced 42% of them8. The plan, funded through a federal Safe Streets and Roads for All grant, targets a 25% reduction in fatal and serious-injury crashes every five years on the way to zero8.
Zoomed out to the county level, Cumberland County recorded 324 fatal crashes and 356 deaths from 2017 through 2023, per NHTSA FARS data, in a county with roughly a third of Wake County's population9. Wake County recorded 505 fatal crashes and 543 deaths over that same span, and Durham County recorded 208 fatal crashes and 218 deaths9. Measured against population, Cumberland's death toll is out of proportion to its size, consistent with what Fayetteville's own crash-concentration numbers already show.
If you're hurt in a crash on one of these roads
North Carolina law requires the driver of a vehicle involved in a "reportable accident" (one causing injury, death, or at least $1,000 in property damage) to notify police immediately, under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-166.110. Responding officers document the crash on a DMV-349 report, the standard form NCDOT uses statewide11. Request a copy once it's filed. It records lane positions, contributing circumstances, and citations, and it's usually the first document an insurance adjuster asks for.
At the intersections above, ask specifically whether the crash location is one NCDOT or the city has already flagged for a safety project. A documented history of crashes, or a planned redesign that hasn't happened yet, can matter to how a claim gets evaluated. Get checked out even if you feel fine; some injuries don't show symptoms right away. If you need help figuring out next steps, the legal directory lists attorneys who handle crash cases across the Triangle and Fayetteville.
This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
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WRAL, "These intersections have the most crashes in Wake County: What improvements are being made?" https://www.wral.com/news/investigates/intersections-most-crashes-wake-county-improvements-2025/
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ABC11 Raleigh-Durham, "Dangerous intersections: Raleigh city leaders look to improve safety in nearly two dozen areas" https://abc11.com/post/dangerous-intersections-nc-raleigh-city-leaders-looks-improve-safety-dozens-areas/15977387/
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Raleigh Magazine, "Safe Streets for All Is Underway to End Car Crash Fatalities" https://raleighmag.com/2025/02/safe-streets-for-all/
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City of Raleigh, Vision Zero and Safe Streets for All Comprehensive Safety Action Plan https://raleighnc.gov/transportation/services/vision-zero and https://raleighnc.gov/transportation/services/vision-zero/safe-streets-all-comprehensive-safety-action-plan
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WRAL, "Which intersections in Durham County have the most crashes? WRAL Investigates got the data" https://www.wral.com/news/investigates/durham-county-intersections-crashes-i40-nc55-january-july-2025/
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City of Durham, Vision Zero https://www.durhamnc.gov/2995/Vision-Zero
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MoneyGeek, "The Deadliest Roads in North Carolina" (analysis of NHTSA FARS data, 2018-2020) https://www.moneygeek.com/living/driving/most-deadly-roads-north-carolina/
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City of Fayetteville, SS4A Comprehensive Safety Action Plan (CSAP) https://www.fayettevillenc.gov/City-Departments/Public-Services/Traffic-Services/SS4A-Comprehensive-Safety-Action-Plan-CSAP
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NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), North Carolina county data, 2017-2023, via FARS API https://farsapi.com/fatal-crashes/north-carolina
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North Carolina General Assembly, N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-166.1 https://www.ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_20/GS_20-166.1.html
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NCDOT, Crash Report Form DMV-349 https://connect.ncdot.gov/business/DMV/DMV%20Documents/Crash%20Report%20Form%20DMV-349.pdf