Wade Avenue begins at a modified
Y-interchange with
I-40 in West Raleigh and continues as a four-lane
freeway, known locally as the
Wade Avenue Extension. From here, the freeway continues southeast along mostly wooded areas and approaches a modified
diamond interchange with Edwards Mill Road, providing access to
Lenovo Center and the
Carter–Finley Stadium. The highway then curves to a more easterly direction as it approaches another diamond interchange with Blue Ridge Road, which provides motorists access to the State Fairgrounds (home of the annual
North Carolina State Fair,
North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine, and the
North Carolina Museum of Art. Wade Avenue continues east toward a complex interchange with
I-440/
US 1, resulting in the end of the freeway stretch of Wade Avenue. Continuing east, Wade Avenue becomes the four-lane arterial surface highway, coming to the pair of at-grade intersections which serve the Ridgewood section of the city, before the road downgrades and proceeds through a hilly terrain, passing by mostly residential neighborhoods for the next two miles. After coming to the
cloverleaf exit with Oberlin Road, Wade Avenue returns to a southeasterly direction, near notable state offices. Another exit comes, with the
U.S. Route 70 (US 70) and
North Carolina Highway 50 (NC 50) interchange. From here, the two highways overlap with Wade Avenue until it ends with the interchange with
U.S. Route 401 (
Capital Boulevard), half mile later. In this vicinity, US 70 and NC 50 join US 401 heading south toward downtown Raleigh. ==History==