The Research Triangle, commonly referred to as "The Triangle", is a metropolitan region in the Piedmont of North Carolina in the United States, anchored by the cities of Raleigh, Durham, and the town of Chapel Hill. The major research universities of North Carolina State University, Duke University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are also located in this region respectively. The name was cemented in the public consciousness in the 1950s with the creation of Research Triangle Park, home to numerous high-tech companies and enterprises. Although the name is commonly used to refer to the cities, "The Triangle" originally referred to the universities, whose research facilities and the educated workforce they provide are the major attraction for businesses located in the Park. The Triangle's population is the most educated and affluent in the Southeastern United States. http://www.joelkotkin.com/Demographics/WSJ%20What%20Brainpower%20Says%20About%20Property%20Trends.htm The region should not be confused with "The Triad", which is the region directly west of the Triangle.
The Triangle region, as defined for statistical purposes as the Raleigh-Durham-Cary-Dunn CSA is generally considered to comprise 7 counties, although the U.S. Census Bureau divided the region into 2 metropolitan statistical areas and 1 micropolitan area in 2003. Some local television networks define the region as Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville, including Fayetteville, North Carolina, which is nearly 50 miles from Raleigh's city limits.
The secondary education setup in the Triangle is similar to that of the majority of the state of North Carolina, in which there are countywide school systems (the exception is Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools alongside Orange County Schools). The largest in the region is the Wake County Public School System, which includes the cities of Raleigh and Cary. The other larger systems in the region rank as such: Durham County, Orange County, and rapidly growing Johnston County.
The major research universities of the Triangle are North Carolina State University, Duke University, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name was cemented in the public consciousness in the 1950s with the creation of Research Triangle Park, home to numerous high-tech companies and enterprises. Although the name is commonly used to refer to the cities, the "triangle" originally referred to the universities, whose research facilities and the educated workforce they provide are the major attraction for businesses located in the Park.
Two of the three interstates diverge from one another in Orange County with I-85 heading northeastward straight through Durham towards Virginia, while I-40 goes southeastward straight through the heart of the region and serving as the main freeway through Raleigh. The spurs of I-440 and I-540, however are primarily located in Wake County around Raleigh. I-440 begins at the interchange of US 1 and I-40 southwest of downtown Raleigh and arcs its way around downtown with the formal designation as the Cliff Benson/Raleigh Beltline (co-signed with US 1 on three-fourths of its route) and ends at its junction with I-40 in southeast Raleigh. I-540 only has a quarter of its route open, but has already become known as the Outer Loop. It does currently serve as a northern arc for those who live in North Raleigh. I-95 serves the eastern edge of the region, crossing south-to-north through Johnston County.
The US highways of 1, 15, and 64 spend a vast amount of their journeys through the region as limited-access freeways or as large highways with access roads. US 1 comes into the region from the southwest as Claude E. Pope Memorial Highway and then into Apex where it merges with US 64 and continues northeast towards Raleigh. The co-designation of the two highways lasts for a little more than 2 miles where US 1 joins I-440 and US 64 with I-40. Capital Boulevard, which is US 1 for half of its route and US 401 the other, is the other major throughfare through Raleigh.
The Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) is the region's primary source for air travel. RDU is located within a 5-mile radius of RTP in northwestern Wake County near the intersection of I-40 and I-540.
There are currently multiple public transportation systems in the Triangle. Raleigh is served by the Capital Area Transit (CAT) municipal transit system, while Durham has the Durham Area Transit Authority (DATA) system. Cary and Chapel Hill are also served by their own public transit systems. However, the Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) works in cooperation with all area transit systems by offering transfers between its own routes and those of the other systems. There are plans on board to merge all of the area's individual systems into the TTA. TTA also has begun construction of a regional rail system to begin operation in 2009 with 12 stops. This regional rail system will run as a line between downtown Durham and downtown Raleigh with multiple stops in the RTP area.
