RALEIGH, N.C. -- NC State students now have a new way to get to class.

• The road fills the gap between Western Boulevard and Centennial Parkway
• The Diocese of Raleigh and NC State combined to pay half of Pullen Road's $3 million price tag.
• Raleigh has permanently closed the intersection of Western Boulevard and Bilyeu Street now that the Pullen Road extension is open.

The Pullen Road extension opened to traffic on Monday. The road fills the gap between Western Boulevard and Centennial Parkway, which provides a direct connection between NC State's Centennial Campus and the main campus.

"It's a project that had been on the Capital Improvement Plan honestly for decades," said Richard Dickie, who oversaw the project for the City of Raleigh. "The city was looking for a way to make this connection through basically from the time Centennial Parkway was envisioned."

The road also runs by the Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral, which opened last year. The Diocese of Raleigh and NC State combined to pay half of Pullen Road's $3 million price tag.

Sam Mendez, a 2017 NC State graduate, says the extension will immediately benefit students on campus.

"It felt like two separate worlds," said Mendez. "Especially going to Hunt Library. That's something you had to plan out. We had to say 'we're going to Hunt tonight' instead of staying at D.H. Hill Library."

Construction on the extension took about a year to complete.

There are future renovations planned for Pullen Road, most notably the reconstruction of the Western Boulevard bridge, but Dickie is optimistic people will appreciate the new improvement.

"Seeing people use it is evidence that it is something that was needed and something that is being well received," said Dickie.

Raleigh has permanently closed the intersection of Western Boulevard and Bilyeu Street now that the Pullen Road extension is open.