ELKINS, W.Va. — Corridor H, with an original estimated completion date of 2036, may be farther along than many West Virginians realize.
And the possibility of more immediate funding if state residents pass a road bond on Oct. 7 could bring completion of the Appalachian highway even closer to striking distance.
“It’s important to remember Corridor H has been waiting 50 years or a little over,” said Robbie Morris, president of the Corridor H Authority. “It’s the last of the Appalachian Highway system in West Virginia. For West Virginia — the region of the state and really the whole state — it’s important to get it finished now.”
The highway, which runs between central West Virginia and northern Virginia, was one of the main topics of discussion this past week during Gov. Jim Justice’s “Roads to Prosperity” tour of West Virginia communities in support of the road bond vote.
During a stop in Elkins, a community member spoke up and asked Justice a fairly blunt question about potential progress on the highway’s construction:
“Will this amount of money that’s going to be awarded for Corridor H, is it just going to go for maybe 8 to 10 miles, or are they going to finish it from Kerens clear in to Mount Storm, or are they gonna put us on hold for 25 years again?”
Justice responded, “I don’t know of any artery that’s as important as Corridor H. None. None. That’s all there is to it. So from my standpoint, if we can channel Trump’s dollars or additional dollars we’re generating here, I think Corridor H is huge to this state. Unbelievable to this state. I think Corridor H is No. 1 priority with me.”
Justice’s transportation secretary, Tom Smith, specified that among the targeted bond projects is a section from Kerens, Randolph County, to Parsons, Tucker County.
“So that’s really important,” Smith said. “But what’s really neat is, we’re reaching the tipping point where traffic is going to start coming across central West Virginia instead of going to Maryland or up around Virginia. So I think it’s going to open up and traffic will start flowing across there.”
Gov. Justice speaks at a Roads to Prosperity Town Hall in Elkins, WV. https://t.co/8106vwI6TL
— Governor Jim Justice (@WVGovernor) September 11, 2017
So much progress has been made on Corridor H in recent years — and so much more progress is possible — that advocates are aiming to complete the West Virginia portion by 2020.
“There are still a lot of people who don’t realize the progress that’s been opened up between Davis and Mount Storm and that area,” said Morris, during an interview in his office at the Randolph County Development Authority.
“Probably four times a month, I’ll get calls from people saying ‘Hey, I just drove on Corridor H for the first time,’ and they give me their opinions.”
The four-lane highway cuts across the spectacular beauty of West Virginia’s central mountains. During the next few weeks, the beauty will be even more apparent as foliage changes color for fall.
“I’m really excited once the leaves start changing colors here in the next couple of weeks because the section in Grant and Hardy counties between Mount Storm and Moorefield is just breathtaking,” Morris said.
“There’s one section where it seems like you’re on top of the mountain and it goes down and it curves to the right and you can see all the way down through the valley, especially at night. It’s gorgeous. It’s just absolutely gorgeous, and it opens up parts of the state that nobody would usually see.
“Our West Virginia mountains and our country roads that we like to brag about so much are absolutely gorgeous, and they give you one view of our mountains, usually down in the hollows or on the sides of the mountains. But that section of Corridor H gets you up on top. You can see the forest for the trees a little bit better up there.”
The most recent section of Corridor H to open was between Davis, Tucker County, and Bismarck, Grant County.
Construction of a 6.2-mile section from Bismarck to Mt. Storm, both in Grant County, was completed in summer 2015. The remaining 9.9-mile section from Mt. Storm to Davis was completed in November 2016.
“So Corridor H is now completed in Grant County, over that way, and Lewis, Upshur and Barbour counties,” Morris said. “All you’ll have left is Tucker County and Hardy that have sections incomplete.”
The sections still remaining are a 15-mile stretch from Kerens to Parsons, 10 miles from Parsons to Davis and 6.3 miles from Wardensville, Hardy County, to the state line.
The Kerens to Parsons project was divided into three segments.
Work is well underway on the first, 7.5-mile section in Randolph County.
A second, 3.2-mile section is proposed to be covered under the bond referendum.
Once about four more miles is finished after that, the section would be complete.
The Parsons to Davis segment was originally estimated to undergo design in 2025 and construction in 2031. Now progress seems likely to begin much sooner than that.
The mountainous terrain will pose a big challenge, though.
“That’s going to be the most difficult section for a lot of reasons,” Morris said. “Just the topography of Backbone Mountain is a significant mountain along the route. You have environmental, historical and geologically-sensitive areas you need to navigate. You have lots of bridges. So it’s going to be a costly section.”
Wardensville to the Virginia line is about six miles. The terrain there is not considered as challenging. Even so, finial design of this section was not originally expected until 2020 with construction to begin in 2027.
Morris advocates a two-pronged approach to push toward earlier completion.
“Do we start on Parsons to Davis? Do we work on Wardensville to the state line?” Morris said. “The state line section is a lot less costly, easier from an environmental permitting, historical standpoint. Do we do that or do we start looking at Parsons to Davis?
“And of course, the Corridor H Authority’s response is, ‘Yes, let’s do it all. Start working on Parsons to Davis stuff so when you do get into those environmentally-sensitive areas you have plenty of time to get input from the environmental community, the historical community about where you’d like to see the road. You have time to plan your analysis to where everyone can agree that this is the route that H needs to take.'”
He continued, “So while you’re doing that, you can be finishing up Kerens to Parsons, you can be working on Wardensville to the state line. And then hopefully once those projects are done or nearing completion you’ve got a plan for Parsons to Davis and then all hands on deck to finish that, and then Corridor H and the Appalachian highways system as a whole in West Virginia is complete.”
In addition to the possibility of a boost from the road bond vote, Morris says greater use of public-private partnerships has enabled the Division of Highways to let projects more quickly.
That has more sections of the highway within striking distance.
“With the Legislature and the Department of Highways’ use of public-private partnerships, especially if the bond passes, I truly feel there is a dedication of priority to Corridor H to get the highway completed,” Morris said.
Some economic results are already starting to show, Morris said.
Moorefield is experiencing higher traffic and greater development. Tucker County also has been getting more activity.
Some economic sectors, such as the hardwoods of central West Virginia, are ripe for increased productivity. Other development requiring the preparation of property will blossom over time, Morris predicted.
“As GPS systems update, as truckers update their routes and people change their driving habits — once that starts to happen — more people will be exposed to the area and you’ll see a lot more economic activity,” Morris said.
He concluded, “It will happen. I’m confident that it will happen. But it’s not just going to be a switch on, switch off kind of thing. West Virginia is located very nicely in the mid-Atlantic region. And our area in West Virginia is supremely located.”