If your car quits on US-64 between Cary and Apex, get it as far right as you can, turn on the hazards, and if you can still roll, take the next right turn or ramp off the highway instead of stopping on the shoulder. Then call a local tow truck that already knows this stretch, give the nearest cross street and your direction, and stay belted in until the truck is beside you.
The stretch: from the US-1 split to the far side of Apex
Through Cary, US-64 and US-1 share the same lanes. At Exit 98, US-64 splits off toward Apex. From there it is a busy four-lane road with traffic lights, not a freeway: drivers pass Lake Pine Drive and Laura Duncan Road at signals, cross the railroad bridge west of Laura Duncan, and then reach the interchanges at NC-55, NC-540 and Kelly Road heading out toward Jordan Lake.
- The US-1/US-64 split near Tryon Road: merging traffic, lane changes and fast drivers. Do not stop in the gore, the striped triangle where the lanes divide. Roll past it to a real shoulder or take the ramp.
- Lake Pine Drive to Laura Duncan Road: stop-and-go traffic, so this is where you most often see overheating, dead batteries and stalled transmissions. The good news: a right turn onto a side street is usually close.
- Bridges and the railroad crossing: bridges usually leave less shoulder room. If you have any momentum left, coast off the bridge before you stop.
- NC-55, NC-540 and Kelly Road interchanges: higher speeds. Ramps can be a better place to stop than the main lanes, but do not stop in the curve of a ramp where drivers coming around it can’t see you.
Why cars quit on US-64 in particular
US-64 makes a car sit at lights, then run at highway speed. That finds weak parts.
- Overheating shows up in the evening backup approaching the lights. The fan or the coolant level can’t keep up when the car isn’t moving air through the radiator.
- Batteries and alternators fail in short stop-and-go runs: the starter draws power, and the trip home isn’t long enough to put it back.
- Transmissions that slip or flare show it on the climb back up to speed after a light.
- Flats come from debris on the shoulder and in the turn lanes, plus the construction traffic that comes with a growing town.
- Running out of fuel, usually because the driver was sure they could make it home.
Some of these are roadside fixes and some need a tow. If you aren’t sure whether your car is safe to keep driving, our guide on when to call a tow truck and when you just need roadside help goes through the warning lights one by one.
Where to pull off safely
The best place to break down is anywhere other than a travel lane or a narrow shoulder. On US-64, you often have choices if you act while the car is still rolling.
- Take a right onto the cross street. At Lake Pine Drive or Laura Duncan Road, a right turn gets you out of the 64 traffic and usually onto a slower road with room to stop.
- Use a parking lot. Apex has shopping-center lots right off 64, like Beaver Creek Commons. A lot is the easiest place for a truck to load your car and the safest place for you to wait.
- Take the ramp at an interchange. At NC-55, NC-540 or Kelly Road, the off-ramp and the light or stop at the bottom put you well away from highway-speed traffic.
- If the car won’t roll, stop as far right as possible. Wheels turned away from the road, hazards on, and if it’s dark, the dome light on so other drivers can see there are people inside.
What not to do: don’t stop in a left-turn lane or the median opening unless the car died there. Don’t try to cross three lanes to reach the right shoulder in a car that’s losing power. And don’t get out to look under the hood with traffic going by at highway speed.
What to do, in order
- Get off the road if you can. A side street, a lot or a ramp beats any shoulder.
- Hazards on, seat belt on. If you are stopped on the shoulder, stay buckled in the car unless you can get well away from traffic, behind a guardrail or up the bank.
- Note where you are. Eastbound or westbound, the last light or interchange you passed, and anything you can see: a sign, a business, the railroad bridge. A dropped pin from your phone works too.
- Call (919) 230-4498. Tell us the year, make and model, whether it is all-wheel drive or electric, and what happened in plain words: “temp gauge went red and it steamed,” “it clicks and won’t start,” “flat on the driver’s front.”
- Decide where the car is going. Home, your shop, a dealer, or “somewhere I can get it fixed in Apex.” We’ll give you the price before the truck rolls.
- Call 911 if you’re in a dangerous spot. Stuck in a lane after the car dies, or after any crash with injuries, police come first.
- Wait for the truck in the car, or well off the road. When it arrives, the driver will tell you where to stand while they work.
What the driver does when they get to you
We are based in the Cary–Morrisville area, so getting to US-64 is a short run down US-1 or NC-55. Which truck comes depends on your car and where it is.
On a road like 64, the first job is making the scene safe: lights on, the truck parked so it shields you and your car from the traffic behind. Then the driver checks whether this is a roadside fix. A dead battery is a jump start. A flat with a usable spare is a tire change. An empty tank is fuel delivery. If it’s none of those, it’s a tow.
Front-wheel-drive cars with no damage can go on our Ram wrecker’s Jerr-Dan wheel-lift. All-wheel-drive and electric cars, anything with damage, and anything going a long way ride on one of our two Isuzu rollback carriers with 21-foot Jerr-Dan beds, all four wheels off the road. If you tell us about the car on the phone, the right truck comes the first time.
If you need towing in Apex, we take the car wherever you choose: the shop of your choice in Apex or Cary, your driveway, or a dealer farther away. We’re locally owned, licensed and insured: USDOT 4241594, MC 1642674, $1,000,000 in liability coverage.
What the tow will cost, and what changes the price
We won’t put a dollar figure on a blog post, because the price depends on your situation. Here is what changes it, so you know what to tell us:
- Distance from where the car is to where it’s going. A tow to a shop off Laura Duncan is different from a run to Raleigh or Durham.
- Which truck your car needs: wheel-lift or rollback.
- Where it’s stuck. A car on the shoulder is a simple hookup. A car that slid down the bank or into a ditch may need a winch-out first.
- Whether it’s a roadside fix instead of a tow. That’s usually the shorter, cheaper job, and we’ll tell you if that’s all you need.
If you have a roadside plan through your insurance or your car, check its rules: some plans let you call the company of your choice and send in the receipt for reimbursement.
Common mistakes on US-64
- Limping on to the next light with a red temperature light. The distance from Lake Pine to Laura Duncan is short, but an engine running with no coolant can be ruined in that distance.
- Stopping right after a curve or a hill, where traffic coming up behind can’t see you in time.
- Standing behind the car on the shoulder to wave traffic around. That is the most dangerous place on the road.
If you break down on the US-1 side, before the split, our walkthrough for breaking down on US-1 in Cary covers the exits from Walnut Street down to the 64 split. If you’re south of Apex on NC-55, read our Holly Springs breakdown guide.
Common questions
Do you cover all of US-64 through Apex?
Yes. From the US-1 split near Tryon Road through Apex and out past NC-540 and Kelly Road, plus the side streets and shopping lots off it. We also handle towing in Cary, NC, Morrisville, Holly Springs, Raleigh and Durham.
Can you tow my car to Cary or Raleigh instead of a shop in Apex?
Yes. Tell us where it should go when you call, and we’ll give you the price for that trip. We also do towing in Raleigh and longer runs.
My car died at a light on 64. Should I push it out of the lane?
Only if it’s safe, you have help, and the car is light and on level ground. Pushing a car through a busy intersection is risky. If you can’t move it safely, hazards on, stay belted in, call 911 if traffic is coming at you fast, and then call us.
When your car makes you say WTF, you call WTF Towing. US-64, any hour: (919) 230-4498.
