Hwy 421 by-pass as you go thru town, curves at the Hwy 24 E exit(Southern City Limit). Local police and NCHP love to sit in the wooded median between the North and Southbound lanes, hidden by the curve. The by-pass, known as Faircloth Freeway, is four-lane and gives you the feeling to push the accelerator down, especially during mid-day or late at night when traffic is little to none. Don’t push it. It is a 55 mph zone, they’ll usually give you around 60 mph, anymore though and Barney Fife will write you up without blinking. Out-of-towners beware, especially in the summer when beach traffic is passing through. In general, this entire by-pass should be driven carefully. The district DMV office and gas refill station is located on the bypass out of site of by-passers and the NCHP gather at a local restaraunt near the by-pass on Hwy 701 (Lewis’ Barbeque) in between patrols of the by-pass and I-40.