Stranded? N.C. Crews Ready to Help

By Steve Lyttle, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.

Dec. 24–North Carolina transportation officials say the state’s special motorist assistance program will operate with expanded hours during the holiday season, ready to help drivers in need.

The Incident Management Assistance Patrol (IMAP) program, marking its 40th anniversary, helps motorists who have broken down. During the five-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend, IMAP staffers made more than 1,000 stops to help motorists.

State Incident Management Engineer Brian Purvis said IMAP crews will operate under expanded hours from now through the New Year’s holiday.

IMAP vehicles are equipped to alert other motorists about traffic incidents, and they also carry gasoline, water, air pumps, vehicle jacks, and jumper cables.

Expanded holiday hours are:

–Charlotte area: 5:30-9 p.m. weekdays; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Christmas Day, New Year’s Day, and weekends. Crews patrol Interstates 77, 85, 277 and 485.

–Mountains: 7 a.m.-6:30 p.m. weekdays on I-26, I-40, I-240, and U.S. 74. In addition, 20 miles of I-40 in the Pigeon Forge River Gorge area of Haywood County are patrolled 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

–Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem: 5:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. weekdays, on U.S. 29, I-40, I-40 Business, I-85, I-85 Business, I-40/I-85, U.S. 52, and U.S. 421.

–Raleigh-Durham: 6 a.m.-9 p.m. weekdays on portions of I-40, I-85, I-440 and U.S. 1/64.

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