March 27. By Dave Vieser. With the new Atrium Health Lake Norman rising day by day, you may be wondering when Hwy. 21, AKA Statesville Road, will be widened.

The two-lane road produces lengthy delays for both north and southbound motorists.

A widening project is going stretch from Chic-fil-A in Huntersville north to just past Tenders at the corner of Westmoreland Road and Hwy. 21.

However, work will not begin in time for the hospital’s completion next year.

Here’s the latest from Deputy Town Manager Wayne Herron:

“In the most recent prioritization it was put back in the State Transportation Improvement Program, after having been dropped out a short while back. It is now listed as a 2026-2029 project by NCDOT.”

There is one piece of the road’s improvements which could occur sooner.

As part of the rezoning approval granted by the town to Atrium Hospital, additional turning lanes at the intersection of Westmoreland and 21 are required to be built at the hospital’s expense before it opens. There will be more entrance and exit lanes along 21.

Stay tuned.