West Virginia

[seicer]

Sorry, Wardensville. But SR 16 is really WV secondary route 16.

[Bitmapped]

Sorry, Wardensville. But SR 16 is really WV secondary route 16.

It's really Hardy County Route 16 per WVDOH.

[Alps]

I think SR 16 is a little more than 11.2 miles from Moorefield.

he said "near"

[Dirt Roads]

Sorry, Wardensville. But SR 16 is really WV secondary route 16.

It's really Hardy County Route 16 per WVDOH.

Not sure about that part of the state, but most of West Virginia counties would show this as CR-16 (meaning County Route, a throwback to the olden days when there was a County Road Commissioner.  (For the record, that era ended in 1911 back when the Mountain State had more brick-paved street than asphalt roads).

[seicer]

Interesting. Wikipedia notes county routes as secondary routes (trunk or spur) but the state's general highway maps for each county notes them purely as county routes. I'll go with what is listed by the state.

[Dirt Roads]

Sorry, Wardensville. But SR 16 is really WV secondary route 16.

It's really Hardy County Route 16 per WVDOH.

Not sure about that part of the state, but most of West Virginia counties would show this as CR-16 (meaning County Route, a throwback to the olden days when there was a County Road Commissioner.  (For the record, that era ended in 1911 back when the Mountain State had more brick-paved street than asphalt roads).

Interesting. Wikipedia notes county routes as secondary routes (trunk or spur) but the state's general highway maps for each county notes them purely as county routes. I'll go with what is listed by the state.

It's a quirk of the West Virginia numbering system that State Routes qualify are considered as "primary" and County Routes are considered as "Secondary".  Those designations have very little to do with the old FAP and FAS designations.  The DOH does maintain an inventory (and map) of the Federal Aid status of the entire system, but the categories are

• Interstate routes
• National Highway System routes
• Surface Transportation Program eligible
• Intermodal routes
• Not eligible

Almost all of the State Routes are listed as STP-eligible, but there's a handful of State Routes that make it into the National Highway System (thus truly qualified as FAP routes).  Here's a few that I've found thus far:

• WV-193//WV-2 from Barboursville -to- Henderson
• WV-817 from St. Albans -to- I-64
• WV-10 from Logan -to- Gilbert
• WV-16//WV-97//WV-16 from Welch -to- West Virginia Turnpike
• a section of WV-41 connected to US-19 Bypass in South Beckley
• WV-55, both the Corridor H section and the easternmost section to the Virginia Line
• a corridor linking Keyser -to- Corridor H using US-220//WV-972//US-50//WV-93
• WV-9 from Berkeley Springs -to- Virginia State Line
• WV-43 Mon-Fayette
• LSR-857 from US-119 Mileground -to- I-68
• a corridor linking Moundsville -to- Morgantown via US-250//WV-7
• WV-88 from Oglebay Park -to- I-70
• WV-95 Camden Avenue from Davison Street -to- I-77
• WV-14 from Parkersburg -to- Vienna (the entirety of Grand Central Avenue up to the far exclave of Vienna, not sure why there
• Memorial Bridge in Parkersburg (for some reason listed as WV-798 rather than WV-140)
• WV-2 from Parkersburg -to- Chester
• WV-705
• and surprisingly, WV-598 up over East River Mountain

Also, there's only a couple of handful of Intermodal routes in the state.  The interactive map works better if you filter out all of the FAS Category 5 routes and turn Styling on.

[Rothman]

Sorry, Wardensville. But SR 16 is really WV secondary route 16.

It's really Hardy County Route 16 per WVDOH.

Not sure about that part of the state, but most of West Virginia counties would show this as CR-16 (meaning County Route, a throwback to the olden days when there was a County Road Commissioner.  (For the record, that era ended in 1911 back when the Mountain State had more brick-paved street than asphalt roads).

Interesting. Wikipedia notes county routes as secondary routes (trunk or spur) but the state's general highway maps for each county notes them purely as county routes. I'll go with what is listed by the state.

It's a quirk of the West Virginia numbering system that State Routes qualify are considered as "primary" and County Routes are considered as "Secondary".  Those designations have very little to do with the old FAP and FAS designations.  The DOH does maintain an inventory (and map) of the Federal Aid status of the entire system, but the categories are

• Interstate routes
• National Highway System routes
• Surface Transportation Program eligible
• Intermodal routes
• Not eligible

Almost all of the State Routes are listed as STP-eligible, but there's a handful of State Routes that make it into the National Highway System (thus truly qualified as FAP routes).  Here's a few that I've found thus far:

• WV-193//WV-2 from Barboursville -to- Henderson
• WV-817 from St. Albans -to- I-64
• WV-10 from Logan -to- Gilbert
• WV-16//WV-97//WV-16 from Welch -to- West Virginia Turnpike
• a section of WV-41 connected to US-19 Bypass in South Beckley
• WV-55, both the Corridor H section and the easternmost section to the Virginia Line
• a corridor linking Keyser -to- Corridor H using US-220//WV-972//US-50//WV-93
• WV-9 from Berkeley Springs -to- Virginia State Line
• WV-43 Mon-Fayette
• LSR-857 from US-119 Mileground -to- I-68
• a corridor linking Moundsville -to- Morgantown via US-250//WV-7
• WV-88 from Oglebay Park -to- I-70
• WV-95 Camden Avenue from Davison Street -to- I-77
• WV-14 from Parkersburg -to- Vienna (the entirety of Grand Central Avenue up to the far exclave of Vienna, not sure why there
• Memorial Bridge in Parkersburg (for some reason listed as WV-798 rather than WV-140)
• WV-2 from Parkersburg -to- Chester
• WV-705
• and surprisingly, WV-598 up over East River Mountain

Also, there's only a couple of handful of Intermodal routes in the state.  The interactive map works better if you filter out all of the FAS Category 5 routes and turn Styling on.

Whether a route is State or County has nothing to do with federal-aid eligibility or if a route is on the NHS or not.

Primary, secondary, State, County...What matters is who owns the roads.

Ownership =/= funding eligibility.

So, even though WV has "county routes" as the secondary routes on the legend for its maps, the question of ownership has been left unanswered so far.

[Mapmikey]

The state owns and maintains the CR system of roads.

https://transportation.wv.gov/highways/Pages/default.aspx

[Rothman]

The state owns and maintains the CR system of roads.

https://transportation.wv.gov/highways/Pages/default.aspx

I see federal, state and municipal in that link, but not county?  Are the "county routes"/secondary routes included in the mileage of public roads?

[SP Cook]

Unlike most all of the other states, a "county route" in WV is just a classification of road, these roads are maintained by the state DOH.  There are no county road departments in WV, as in other states.  Thus WV has more roads under state maintenance than Texas. 

The long answer is that during the Depression lots of people were losing their property to the counties for taxes.  The state amended the Constitution to drastically cut taxes on real property.  This dried most of the funding for counties and, as a result, the state took over the maintenance of "county routes" and the funding of schools.  Counties in WV do little more than run the courthouse functions and the Sheriff's office.

https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/688

[Mapmikey]

The state owns and maintains the CR system of roads.

https://transportation.wv.gov/highways/Pages/default.aspx

I see federal, state and municipal in that link, but not county?  Are the "county routes"/secondary routes included in the mileage of public roads?

The statistic that says about 34,700 miles are in the state system tells you it includes the county route system. 

[seicer]

If you follow the West Virginia Department of Transportation's Facebook page, they are always highlighting the work they perform on county routes, too. It's always WVDOH crews. This is a good discussion.

[Rothman]

The state owns and maintains the CR system of roads.

https://transportation.wv.gov/highways/Pages/default.aspx

I see federal, state and municipal in that link, but not county?  Are the "county routes"/secondary routes included in the mileage of public roads?

The statistic that says about 34,700 miles are in the state system tells you it includes the county route system. 

Excellent.

[Dirt Roads]

The state owns and maintains the CR system of roads.

https://transportation.wv.gov/highways/Pages/default.aspx

I see federal, state and municipal in that link, but not county?  Are the "county routes"/secondary routes included in the mileage of public roads?

Unlike most all of the other states, a "county route" in WV is just a classification of road, these roads are maintained by the state DOH.  There are no county road departments in WV, as in other states.  Thus WV has more roads under state maintenance than Texas. 

The long answer is that during the Depression lots of people were losing their property to the counties for taxes.  The state amended the Constitution to drastically cut taxes on real property.  This dried most of the funding for counties and, as a result, the state took over the maintenance of "county routes" and the funding of schools.  Counties in WV do little more than run the courthouse functions and the Sheriff's office.

https://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/688

The statistic that says about 34,700 miles are in the state system tells you it includes the county route system.

Be careful with the mileage.  Unlike most other states, West Virginia not only maintains almost all of the public roads statewide, but also many of the private roads.  The most notable is the HARP (Home Access Road Program) with their unique version of a pentagon shield (house shaped).  But there are a number of other categories of orphan roads and bridges that are state-maintained, including most recently MARP roads (Medical Access Road Program).  These programs have not always been politically popular, but given that everybody quit maintaining private roads "after the one fellow who owned a tractor with a grader blade died in the 1940s" at least somebody is maintaining those roads.

On the flip side, there has historically been a lot of County Road mileage that was not being maintained by the State Road Commission (now DOH).  Many of the state's backroads just simply lost population.  I've got a relative that has a mile of Putnam CR-5 that runs on his cattle farm that hasn't been accessible to the public for more than 50 years.  It finally got removed from the official road maps sometime in the last decade.  The DOH is pretty good about cataloguing each route segment for budget purposes, so it is likely that the statewide mileage does not include the portions of the County Roads that are no longer being maintained.

[Bitmapped]

The statistic that says about 34,700 miles are in the state system tells you it includes the county route system.

Be careful with the mileage.  Unlike most other states, West Virginia not only maintains almost all of the public roads statewide, but also many of the private roads.  The most notable is the HARP (Home Access Road Program) with their unique version of a pentagon shield (house shaped).  But there are a number of other categories of orphan roads and bridges that are state-maintained, including most recently MARP roads (Medical Access Road Program).  These programs have not always been politically popular, but given that everybody quit maintaining private roads "after the one fellow who owned a tractor with a grader blade died in the 1940s" at least somebody is maintaining those roads.

HARP roads are public roads. WVDOH took easements as part of the process of accepting them into state maintenance.

The Medical Access Road Program was just a gimmick for using pandemic aid funds. They were existing roads already in the state system. In my county, "medical access road" funding went to paving a county route and repairing a slide on WV 7.

Anything that is WVDOH-maintained is a WV route, county route, HARP route, or Park & Forest route. DOH doesn't maintain other roads. While there are still a couple Delta route (state maintained with ambiguous ownership) signs around, those routes have either been fully taken into the state system or are no longer being maintained by the state.

On the flip side, there has historically been a lot of County Road mileage that was not being maintained by the State Road Commission (now DOH).  Many of the state's backroads just simply lost population.  I've got a relative that has a mile of Putnam CR-5 that runs on his cattle farm that hasn't been accessible to the public for more than 50 years.  It finally got removed from the official road maps sometime in the last decade.  The DOH is pretty good about cataloguing each route segment for budget purposes, so it is likely that the statewide mileage does not include the portions of the County Roads that are no longer being maintained.

If it's on a DOH county map, it's technically still a road and is counted in the mileage. DOH county map data isn't always accurate either - I've seen roads that the maps indicated were actively maintained gravel that had trees growing in the middle of the roadbed (Pendleton CR 28/6 comes to mind from about 15 years ago).

WV does have a significant amount of mileage in rural areas that is functionally abandoned and not passable by passenger car. There's also mileage that is a dead-end and just serves 1-2 properties that I've thought should be turned over to the adjacent landowners. I've advocated for DOH giving some summer college student interns a state car and having them drive the network, marking anything not readily passable for potential abandonment.

[Rothman]

Oof.  County-owned but State-maintained gets very messy...

[Bitmapped]

Oof.  County-owned but State-maintained gets very messy...

Counties in West Virginia own no roads. County routes are owned and maintained by WVDOH.

There are a small handful of county-owned bridges, but counties are responsible for maintaining those themselves and they are exceedingly rare. I'm not even sure if there are any current examples remaining. The last one I was aware of, on Sabraton Avenue in Morgantown, was taken over by the state as a county route when the bridge was replaced about 10 years ago.

[Rothman]

Oof.  County-owned but State-maintained gets very messy...

Counties in West Virginia own no roads. County routes are owned and maintained by WVDOH.

There are a small handful of county-owned bridges, but counties are responsible for maintaining those themselves and they are exceedingly rare. I'm not even sure if there are any current examples remaining. The last one I was aware of, on Sabraton Avenue in Morgantown, was taken over by the state as a county route when the bridge was replaced about 10 years ago.

Ah, okay.  Thanks.

[hbelkins]

I've noticed that many of the old "delta" routes in the western/southwestern part of the state are now signed as HARP routes.

[seicer]

- I'll have to post photos in the next few days, but the Wellsburg Bridge looks awful. The bottom half of the bridge is a nice deep brown color but the upper half is a light brown with splotches of dark brown patches.

- While flying over the Blennerhassett Island Bridge (US 50) between Ohio and Parkersburg, WV, Thursday evening, I spied a significant fuel slick and was able to trace out its origin. I called the Ohio EPA's emergency line and got a reply within minutes. I sent them my images and they were able to get a crew out there the next day. I also gave the company who owned the dock a heads up and they were indifferent to the spill and told me to call back the next day. They didn't seem too thrilled when I did call back the next day, saying I should have notified them first.

- The Memorial Bridge in Parkersburg looks very nice now that the rehab work has wrapped up. It's now pay-by-plate or EZ-Pass; no toll booths remain.

[hbelkins]

I saw WVDOT's pictures of the bridge. The signage is in FHWA. I thought West Virginia had switched back to Clearview when the approval was reinstated.

[Bitmapped]

- I'll have to post photos in the next few days, but the Wellsburg Bridge looks awful. The bottom half of the bridge is a nice deep brown color but the upper half is a light brown with splotches of dark brown patches.

It's Corten steel. I would expect the colors to even out over time.

I saw WVDOT's pictures of the bridge. The signage is in FHWA. I thought West Virginia had switched back to Clearview when the approval was reinstated.

WVDOH stayed with FHWA alphabet when Clearview was reinstated.

FWIW, WVDOH stuck with FHWA for its in-house sign shop the entire time. It was only contractor-produced signage, primarily from large-scale sign replacements, that used Clearview at all.

[seicer]

It's not Corten. It's brown paint. (Images from my flyover direct from the camera - not yet gotten around to editing the raw images.)

[seicer]

Some notes from the past week:

- WVDOH is now using thermoplastic roadway striping. They first applied it on I-64 in the Charleston metro area with a recent repaving project.
- WVDOH is now purging Corten guardrails from its system. The not-very-old Corten guardrails along Corridor H east of Davis are being replaced with standard galvanized models. It would have been good to see brown painted guardrails as used elsewhere.
- Recessed reflectors are now being used more extensively and not just at the highest elevations.
- I-79 is undergoing a major rebuild near Frametown, with the old concrete pavement being broken up and used as a new roadway base. This goes along with other recent widening projects on I-64 and I-79 where the original roadway was replaced during the project.
- New signage is being installed near MM 20 on I-64 in Barboursville as part of a major widening/rebuild project. The interstate is being widened to six through lanes, with an eight-lane segment between Exits 18 and 20. This project involves rebuilding the roadway base, re-sloping and re-leveling the roadway (especially along the Guyandotte River), adding extensive retaining walls on the hillside slopes, and rebuilding all bridges.
- The northbound lanes of the WV Turnpike was closed yesterday for an overturned HAZMAT tanker. The contents of the HAZMAT tanker did not spill into Paint Creek or any waterway. Detour A was activated, with all electronic signs in the vicinity activated. It must have worked out very well as I-79 was clogged with trucks going southbound from MM 57 towards Charleston last night. The rest area at Servia was completely congested, with trucks parking along the shoulder for a mile away from the rest area.

[Bitmapped]

It's not Corten. It's brown paint. (Images from my flyover direct from the camera - not yet gotten around to editing the raw images.)

From some of the design studies, it looks like they anticipated Corten for the approach spans and floor system of the arch, with the above-deck portion of the arch being painted. https://www.bhjmpc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Proposed-Ohio-River-Bridge-Deck-Width-Study-dated-Received-June-19-2014.pdf

That amount of difference in the brown paint in the apparently painted portion is odd. Not sure why that would be the case. Looks like they did touch-up work on sections and things didn't match.