The Expressway is complete and open to traffic between I-64/I-77 at MacArthur and CR 34 at Slab Fork in Raleigh County, a distance of approximately 7.7 miles. A section in Raleigh County extending south from CR 34 to a point west of Helen, approximately 5 miles in length has been constructed to grade but has not been paved and is not open to traffic. Construction of an additional 1.8-mile section extending south from that point began in late 2013; this construction will extend from Raleigh County into Wyoming County and is anticipated to be completed in the fall of 2016. From that point south, design is underway for the 3.8-mile section extending to WV 54 at Mullens, in Wyoming County. The construction to complete the approximate 10-mile section between Slab Fork and Mullens is anticipated to begin in 2018.
Design began in 1998 for the 9-mile section of the Expressway that will extend from US 52 in McDowell County to north of WV 16 near Woosley in Wyoming County, and which would include an interchange with the proposed King Coal Highway Corridor. Within this design section, an approximate one-mile section just north of Welch in McDowell County has been constructed to grade but has not been paved and is not open to traffic. This section is adjacent to the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) complex that opened in 2010.
Approximately 15 miles remain to be designed in Wyoming County, generally between Mullens and Woosley, and approximately 21 miles remain to be designed in McDowell County, generally between US 52 and the WV/VA state line.
To date, more than $140 million in federal funds have been appropriated by the US Congress and/or approved through federal discretionary funding programs for the Coalfields Expressway. In addition, the WVDOH has utilized more than $40 million in State funds for the development of the Expressway. The cost to complete the Coalfields Expressway in WV currently is estimated to be about $1 Billion.
Status Map