Greensboro's Battleground Avenue: What to Do If You're Stuck There

If your car quits on Battleground Avenue in Greensboro, turn on your hazards and steer right. A side street or a shopping center lot beats any lane. Don't stop in a turn lane or on the I-840 ramps. If you're stuck in a live lane or anyone is hurt, stay buckled and call 911. Then call for help and give three things: Battleground Avenue (not Old Battleground Road), your direction and the nearest cross street.

Why is a breakdown on Battleground Avenue harder than one on a side street?

Battleground is one of the main ways north out of Greensboro. It picks up US 220 at the Wendover Avenue interchange. From there it runs northwest past Cone Boulevard, Martinsville Road and Pisgah Church Road. Then it crosses the Urban Loop at I-840 exit 6. Shops line most of the road south of Pisgah Church Road. North of it, the road gets more residential, and the shopping centers sit at the big intersections.

That mix means heavy traffic and lots of turning cars. NCDOT says the stretch from Westridge Road to the I-840 ramps has a crash rate "well above statewide averages for similar facilities." It has four lanes today. NCDOT's plan would widen it to six lanes, add a median and sidewalks, and improve the intersections at New Garden Road and Brassfield Road. Planning was still underway when we checked, and no build dates were posted. So plan on today's road.

The south end has its own trouble. In 2023, the city and NCDOT held a public meeting on the area where Battleground, Lawndale Drive and Westover Terrace meet, between Wendover Avenue and Fernwood Drive. Their list of known problems included high crash frequency and too little room for turning cars. It also named short weaving distances between entrances and exits. Their first goal was "a less confusing roadway network." A stalled car in a spot like that leaves the cars behind you very little room.

Where should you pull over on Battleground Avenue?

Your car usually warns you first. The engine stumbles, a light comes on, or the steering gets heavy. Use those few seconds to pick a better spot than the lane you're in.

• Turn right if you can. A side street or a lot entrance gets you out of the flow. Roll past the entrance itself and stop in the lot, clear of the driving aisle, so cars turning in don't come up behind you.
• Skip the turn lanes. Drivers behind you expect you to turn, not sit. Traffic in the next lane passes close to your door.
• Stay off the I-840 ramps. The Battleground interchange is a single-point design. One signal in the middle runs the left turns for every ramp. A dead car on a ramp or under that signal blocks a lot of people at once.
• Get past the Lake Brandt bridge. North of the loop, US 220 crosses Lake Brandt on a causeway and bridge. If the car still coasts, clear it before you stop. On a frosty morning, bridges ice before the road does.
• Can't move at all? Stop where you are with your hazards on. If you're in a live lane, stay in your seat with your belt on and call 911.

If you get out, use the door away from traffic. Only do it when you have a safe place to stand, well back from the road.

How do you tell a dispatcher exactly where you are?

"I'm on Battleground" covers miles of road. Give these four things, in this order:

1. The road name. Say Battleground Avenue. Greensboro also has Old Battleground Road, a different road near the national military park. Since the Urban Loop went in, Old Battleground Road no longer crosses it. It ends in a cul-de-sac on the south side of the loop and at Lake Brandt Road on the north side. Mix the two up and your driver may head for the wrong road.
2. Your direction. Northbound is toward the loop and Summerfield. Southbound is toward Wendover Avenue and downtown.
3. The nearest cross street. Cone Boulevard, Pisgah Church Road, Westridge Road, New Garden Road and Brassfield Road all work. The store you're beside helps too.
4. Your side and your lane. "Northbound, right lane, just past the light" is a spot a driver can find in heavy traffic.

Near the loop, say "Battleground at I-840 exit 6." If you're on a ramp, say which one and which way it heads.

Is it a jump start, a tire change or a tow?

On the retail stretch, a lot of car trouble shows up in a parking space. That's good news. Several fixes can happen right where you sit.

• You come out from errands and hear a click. That's a jump start, not a tow.
• A curb at a tight turn took out a tire. If your spare is good, a flat tire change in the lot gets you home.
• Your keys are locked inside at the grocery store. That's a car lockout.
• Smoke, grinding, or an engine that won't run. That needs a car tow to the shop you pick.

Tell the dispatcher what you heard and saw. A dead battery and a dead engine sound alike to you. The details help match the right help to the job, and your price fits the real job.

What if someone taps your bumper in rush-hour traffic?

Stop-and-go traffic near the big lights means bumper taps. North Carolina has a rule for the small ones. Under G.S. 20-166(c2), if nobody is hurt and every car can still be driven, each driver should move out of the travel lane as soon as possible. The law points you to the shoulder or a marked crash investigation site. Where there's no room on the shoulder, the next side street or lot is often the closest safe spot. Swap your information there, not in the lane.

If anyone is hurt, or a car can't move, call 911 first. Sentinel is not an emergency service.

What happens when your partner's truck shows up?

Your driver parks near your car with warning lights on. North Carolina's move-over law, G.S. 20-157(f), covers vehicles that help drivers with disabled cars. It applies when they're parked within 12 feet of the road. Where Battleground has two lanes your way, passing drivers must move to the lane farther from the truck when it's safe. If they can't, they must slow down and be ready to stop.

Don't count on every driver doing that. Stand in the lot or on the far side of the car, away from traffic, and let your driver work. Before hookup, your driver photographs all four sides of your car, and we text you the photos.

Can you leave the car on Battleground and come back for it?

Not for long. Under G.S. 20-161(e), an officer can remove a car left on a highway right-of-way for 24 hours or more. In a store lot, it can happen sooner. In Guilford County, G.S. 20-219.2 says a lot that tows must post a sign at every entrance. The sign names the tow company and its phone number. The owner or tenant of the space can ask that company to tow you. If you see that sign, get help before you walk away.

Already towed? Sentinel doesn't do impounds or private-property tows. Call the company named on the lot's sign. If Greensboro Police towed it, call 336-373-2435. For other tows, the city's towed car page lists Parking Enforcement at 336-373-2648. If the car won't run once you get it back, we can send a partner to tow it to your shop.

What if you break down near Guilford Courthouse National Military Park?

The park's visitor center is at 2332 New Garden Road. The park's own directions put New Garden Road about three miles north up Battleground from Benjamin Parkway. Turn right there to reach the park.

Watch the clock if your car dies inside. The park says its gates close at 5:00 p.m., and that includes the visitor center lot. Cars left in the lots or on the Tour Road after that are subject to a fine. If your battery dies there late in the day, call the visitor center at 336-288-1776 and call for a jump right away. The park says after-hours parking is in the lot where New Garden Road meets Old Battleground Road.

How does Sentinel help on Battleground?

Sentinel Towing is a towing and roadside network. A vetted local partner tow company does the job, not us. We text you a locked price before anyone is sent. If the job changes, we text a new price first, and you decide. Then we check on you by text until your truck arrives, and you can track your truck on a map. If your car rides on the truck, you can ride along when it's safe and allowed, or we help you get a ride. The full terms are in the Stay-With-You Promise. For help anywhere else in the city, see the Greensboro towing page.

Stuck right now? Call 1-888-TOW-1213, or request help online.

Battleground Avenue Breakdown Questions

Rules change, so check the official source before you rely on it. Sources: NCDOT US 220 widening, NCDOT project highlights, NCDOT Western Loop, City of Greensboro U-6108 meeting (archived), Guilford Courthouse NMP directions, G.S. 20-166, G.S. 20-157, G.S. 20-161, G.S. 20-219.2, Greensboro Police: retrieve a towed car, DriveNC.