Two-car crash shuts down S. Saunders Street, sends three to hospital

A two-car crash on S. Saunders Street shut down part of the corridor south of downtown Raleigh and sent three people to the hospital, turning a late Saturday morning wreck into a traffic problem for drivers moving between downtown, the Beltline and south Raleigh. The scene, in the 1800 block near Interstate 40 and the Red Roof Inn, showed how quickly this stretch can go from a commuter route to a choke point.

Raleigh police said the crash happened around 10:50 a.m. on June 27, 2026, near Penmarc Drive. Three people were taken to a hospital with injuries that officers later described as not appearing to be life-threatening. The road later reopened.

Photos from the scene showed heavy damage to both vehicles, including a red SUV with a crushed front end and a Honda flipped upside down and left in pieces on the roadway. The crash involved two vehicles, but the damage spread far beyond the immediate intersection as southbound traffic on U.S. 401 and northbound movement in the area backed up during the closure.

That disruption is part of the larger problem with S. Saunders Street in Wake County. In this part of Raleigh, the corridor carries local traffic, downtown access and regional movement on U.S. 401, which makes any closure felt quickly in nearby neighborhoods and on the approaches to downtown. Even a short shutdown can ripple into delays for drivers heading toward Interstate 40, the southside industrial and commercial corridor and nearby connections to Lake Wheeler Road.

The crash also landed on a roadway the City of Raleigh is already trying to remake. The South Saunders Street Project is intended to build a multi-use path on the east side of South Saunders Street and connect the Lake Wheeler Road improvements to the future Dix-Chavis Strollway, linking downtown Raleigh with John Chavis Memorial Park and Dix Park. The city is also planning improvements to Lake Wheeler Road between South Saunders Street and Maywood Avenue.

Saturday’s wreck added another serious incident to a stretch of road that has seen pedestrian-injury and fatal-crash cases in recent years. For drivers, the immediate issue was the closure and the detour. For everyone using the corridor daily, it was another reminder that S. Saunders Street remains one of Raleigh’s most vulnerable southside links when a crash blocks the route.