DAVIS, W.Va. — It’s been called the “Road to Nowhere.” However, Corridor H is going somewhere, according to Stephen Foster, the Chairman of the Corridor H Authority.
“It’s going to be about 75 percent done at the end of this year. They’re working on a stretch right now from Davis and Thomas, WV over to connect that to Mt. Storm or Bismarck. So it will be 75 percent done at the end of this year or the beginning of next year,” stressed Foster.
The project got underway in the 60’s and took off in the 80’s and 90’s thanks to plentiful funding through U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd. That money has dried up since the Senator’s death in 2010. Now the Authority is playing the waiting game with the Transportation Trust Fund that was renewed last week by Congress through May of 2015. Foster said it would be much better if lawmakers approved a 6-year plan so that projects could get more than a handful of dollars here and there.
That’s how the project is working right now. Foster said they’re working on a few miles at a time. Currently two projects are left to complete.
“(We have) two parts. One would be connecting Wardensville to the Virginia state line from where Virginia’s part of Corridor H will connect. The other part will be taking it from Kearns, West Virginia, up the mountain, all the way up to the Davis and Thomas area.” according to Foster.
In fact, Corridor H is one of only two along the Appalachian Corridor that are not yet complete. The other is in Tennessee. While some believe masses of money have been wasted on the project, Foster said wait until it’s complete and people will see the real benefit.
“We’ve done studies that show it’s well over a billion dollars of economic impact if we can get the road done by 2020,” Foster explained.
Whether that will happen is still up in the air. Foster said he’ll have a better idea come Monday when they’ll get an update from the Department of Transportation