Despite this winter’s harsh weather, Interstate 74/U.S. 311 Bypass construction is proceeding, and the city of Archdale has shifted into high gear in preparing for when the highway opens later this year.

On Tuesday, City Council approved a plan to improve the stretch of N.C. 62 between Aldridge and Penman roads, which essentially will become an eastern gateway to the city when the interstate project is completed. Overall, the plan, officially known as the N.C. 62 Corridor Access Plan, looks like positive steps for the growing city.

The plan calls for widening the Aldridge/Penman stretch to four lanes with a median and left turn lanes to improve safety and traffic flow. Improvements to several intersections along the way also would be made. And in a prudent planning move, the document also sets out recommendations and specifications for driveways and access points that will help in planning for new develop that surely will occur in that area after completion of roadwork. The plan even accommodates pedestrian and cycling traffic.

But Tuesday’s action and the six-month study that proceeded it likely were the easy parts of this plan – unless someone drops off a pile of cash at Archdale City Hall. The corridor plan contains no cost estimates, but it does note a number of local, state and federal avenues through which funding can be sought. Of course, the problem today is that many of those funding sources are shrinking. So now, city officials must go into overdrive to figure out how this plan can be funded.