West Virginia Transportation Secretary Paul Mattox will be joined by Martinsburg Mayor George Karos, officials from the FHWA and other state and local leaders, Wednesday, September 11, 2013 as they cut the ribbon to mark the opening and completion of the 1.2 mile Raleigh Street Extension in Martinsburg . Beginning at 3:00 p.m., the event will take place on the new highway, just off Route 9 (Edwin Miller Blvd.).* The public is invited to attend. Division of Highways personnel will be on hand to assist with directions and parking.
“We last celebrated the groundbreaking of this project in May of 2010,” stated Secretary Mattox. “Thanks to the support and cooperation of the Federal Highway Administration, Senator John Unger, Martinsburg Mayor Karos and City Manager Mark Baldwin, next week, the completion of the Raleigh Street Extension will no longer be a projection. It will be a reality. I look forward to joining them next week to celebrate what will be the area’s newest asset.”
“It has been a long time coming,” stated Martinsburg Mayor George Karos. “But with patience and perseverance, along with cooperation from municipal, county and state resources, we can achieve great things for the betterment of Martinsburg, the Eastern Panhandle and the State of West Virginia.”
The Raleigh Street Extension Project is a newly constructed roadway that connects existing Raleigh Street on the southern end at the intersection of Race and Raleigh Street and continues north to the intersection with Edwin Miller Boulevard. The new roadway will help eliminate the congestion on Queen Street thru downtown Martinsburg to the east and Rock Cliff Drive to the west. The project was broken into 3 different contracts totally nearly $20.8 million. Contractors for the project were Kokosing Construction Company, Inc. out of Columbus, Ohio, Pro Contracting, Inc. out of Clarksburg, WV and Bilco Construction Company, Inc. out of South Charleston, WV.
*Directions: I-81 exit 16 onto Route 9/Edwin Miller Blvd. Travel approximately 1.5 miles to 3rd traffic signal (Walgreen’s and CVS on right) right turn on Raleigh Street, travel ½ mile on new highway to stage area.