Interstate 585 South Carolina

Overview

Interstate 585 is a short spur overlapping with U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) southeast from I-85 into Spartanburg. A diamond interchange joins the north end of I-585 with I-85/U.S. 176 at signalized intersections near Lone Oak. U.S. 176 was upgraded to Interstate standards southeast from the adjacent intersection with Upper Valley Falls Road / Fairforest Road to the University of South Carolina Upstate (USCS) campus by 2006. The original freeway for I-585 stretches 2.25 miles southeast from Business Loop I-85 into the city of Spartanburg by Pinewood Shopping Center.

Despite I-585 shields posted along U.S. 176 north to I-85, South Carolina Department of Transportation (GIS) data inventories only the section of U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) south from Business Loop I-85 as part of Interstate 585. Exit numbers for Interstate 585 utilize the mileposts of U.S. 176 starting from the North Carolina state line.

U.S. 176/S.C. 9 extend southeast along N Pine Street 0.57 miles to Garner Road. This section of arterial was formerly a part of Business Spur I-585. The last shield for the spur was removed after 2004, though a reassurance marker for I-585 north remains posted as of 2021.

Jim D'Amato, senior transportation planner with Spartanburg County, indicated that transportation planners were working on ramp upgrades and improvements to bring U.S. 176 to Interstate standards in order to tie into Interstate 85. He indicated that "Interstates have to link" in an article published by the Herald-Journal on February 2, 2005.⁴ Completed in 2006, work however left three at-grade intersections, including two at the diamond interchange with I-85.

There remain no plans to upgrade the exchange between I-85 and U.S. 176 to a freeway to freeway interchange. The US 176 Corridor Improvements underway between Winter 2017 and Winter 2018 instead made center median improvements and coordinated traffic signals from Springfield Road east to Fairforest Road. The $1.7 million project was approved on December 3, 2009.⁸

Mileage by State

South Carolina

2.25 mi

Data Sources

December 31, 2025 Interstate Route Log and Finders List

History

Interstate 585 opened as a freeway for U.S. 176 in 1957.^1,5 It was built in conjunction with projects to upgrade the U.S. 29 bypass of Spartanburg to Interstate 85.

Efforts to relocate Interstate 85 away from Spartanburg onto a new alignment in 1983 led to a Spartanburg Area Transportation Study (SPATS) committee vote in 1984 pertaining to area highways. The SPATS recommendation to the South Carolina Highway Department included an access improvement plan for both Interstate 585 and Asheville Highway (S.C. 56). A study presented to Spartanburg City Council in May 1984 recommended designating both I-585 and S.C. 56 as primary routes to and from the Spartanburg central business district while renumbering the old I-85 as Interstate 285 once the new alignment for I-85 opened to the north.

Improvements proposed for I-585 and S.C. 56 included new way finding signs for Uptown Spartanburg, extending street lighting, replacing Hearon Circle with a diamond interchange and building a half cloverleaf interchange between Pine Street (Business Spur I-585 / U.S. 176) and McCravy Drive. The SPATS committee however differed from a city council study, suggesting the highway department consider an alternative to the McCravy Drive interchange.¹⁰ Upgrades at Hearon Circle and for Pine Street at McCravy Drive were never implemented.

The new alignment for Interstate 85 opened to traffic in August 1995. SCDOT received approval from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) for both the relocation of I-85 and the recognition of Business Loop I-85 on April 22, 1995. This left I-585 as a spur from the cloverleaf interchange with the business route by the Milliken Arboretum.

U.S. 176 was upgraded to Interstate standards from Business Loop I-85 northwest to Interstate 85 as part of a two phase project starting in 2003. The first phase involved interchange construction at both Campus Boulevard to USCS and Valley Falls Road. Phase two focused on upgrading the remainder of U.S. 176 to I-85.² Costing $62 million, road work was formally completed following a ribbon cutting ceremony held on October 25, 2006.³

Further south in Spartanburg, a $3.5 million project added a new off-ramp from Interstate 585 east to S.C. 9 (Church Street), replacing an adjacent ramp to U.S. 221 (Whitney Road). The work modified the entrance ramp bringing S.C. 9 south onto I-585 into a distributor roadway connecting the new S.C. 9 exit with U.S. 221. This replaced a weaving traffic pattern on the I-585 mainline leftover from the 1950s design of the freeway. Construction on the ten month long project started in May 2005.⁴

The California Avenue overpass at Exit 24 was damaged by a tractor trailer hauling machinery in January 2014. The incident dislocated the span by nearly five feet, leading to its closure and subsequent demolition.⁵ A $12 million project followed to replace both the damaged span and to raise the height on the nearby bridge carrying S.C. 9 over I-585 by two feet.⁶ The California Avenue bridge reopened in March 2015. Associated repaving along I-585 and work on the S.C. 9 overpass were completed in mid June 2015.⁷

North End  ‐ Southern Shops, SC

North West at

I-585/U.S. 176 shift west from the diamond interchange with Valley Falls Road at Lone Oak one mile ahead of Interstate 85. Photo by Carter Buchanan (08/20/16).

East at

U.S. 176 branches east from Asheville Highway (S.C. 56) 0.46 miles to the diamond interchange (Exit 72) with Interstate 85 by Southern Shops. Photo by Carter Buchanan (08/21/16).

North at

Leaving the cloverstack interchange with Interstate 26, I-85 navigates through an S-curve under New Cut Road (Road 65) and a Norfolk Southern Railroad ahead of the diamond interchange (Exit 72) with U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) and I-585 south. 05/25/21

South at

I-85 spans Valley Falls Road (Road 79) one mile northeast of Exit 72 for U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) and I-585 south. U.S. 176 runs northwest from Spartanburg to Inman, Campobello and Landrum. Signs for Exit 72 were replaced by 2012. 06/01/07

North End  ‐ Lone Oak, SC

North West at

I-585/U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) run alongside Milliken Arboretum and Chinquapin Creek to a three quarter cloverleaf interchange (Exits 23B/A) with Business Loop I-85. 12/15/16

South East at

U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) previously ran between two frontage roads south from a folded diamond interchange with Valley Falls Road to Business Loop I-85. This stretch was upgraded to limited access standards with as many as seven lanes. Photo by Carter Buchanan (08/20/16).

North at

S.C. 56 (Asheville Highway) provides the connection with U.S. 176 (N Pine Street) west from Business Loop I-85 north. 12/15/16

South at

Southbound Business Loop I-85 at Exit 5B for U.S. 176 west. Prior to 2003 road work, U.S. 176 was an at-grade arterial with a lone interchange at Valley Falls Road. Photo by Chris Patriarca (04/06/03).

South End  ‐ Spartanburg, SC

South at East

I-585 concludes south of the exchange (Exit 25) with S.C. 9 (Boiling Springs Road) north, Church Street (U.S. 176 Connector) south and adjacent U.S. 221 (Whitney Road). U.S. 221 runs north toward Cherokee Springs while overtaking Church Street south to Downtown Spartanburg. Photo by Carter Buchanan (08/20/21).

West at

A remnant from when Business Spur I-585 was posted along N Pine Street, this set of shields marking I-585 stands along U.S. 176/S.C. 9 north of Garner Road in Spartanburg. 05/25/21

References

1. Oglesby, S. (2005, November 27). Interstate 585. 3 digit interstates at kurumi.com. Retrieved from http://www.kurumi.com/roads/3di/i585.html
2. "Agency mapping new route to USCS." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), February 12, 2001.
3. "Millions aid Spartanburg traffic flow." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), December 6, 2007.
4. "Highway project near USC Upstate open to drivers." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), October 14, 2006.
5. "Project will smooth rough intersection." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), February 2, 2005.
6. "Pine Street lane closures announced to demolish California Avenue Bridge." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), June 26, 2014.
7. "Work continues on Interstate 585 bridge." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), February 2, 2015.
8. "Highway 9 bridge reopens to traffic after being closed for repairs." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), June 19, 2015.
9. South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT). Project Information - US 176 Corridor Improvements, Project Identification Number: 0039714RD01.
10. "Asheville Highway, I-585 Access Improvements Recommended." Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, SC), June 16, 1984.