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[Dirt Roads]

Were traffic volumes at the St. Albans (WV 817) exit significantly impacted by the new US 35?

My guess would be yes, since of course WV 817 is formerly US 35, and this was the primary access for many years.  I would think that the new 35, even when it still terminated just past Winfield, significantly reduced traffic volumes at the St. Albans exit.  Of course the reconfiguration of that interchange would have fixed the backups back in the day, and almost wouldn’t be needed today if I-64 wasn’t being widened.

I'm sure that there were exceptions, but from the time of the switchover from WV-17 to US-35 after the Silver Bridge disaster there was very little traffic using Exit 44 to access US-35 northbound.  I suspect that much of that traffic was for the John E. Amos power plant, or for the subdivisions located east of Winfield.  The primary route to get to Point Pleasant was always WV-34 at the (now) Teays Valley exit (Exit 39), which was then posted as the Winfield exit.  Most of the Exit 44 traffic headed for Scary and Scott Depot still heads that way (although we always used Exit 44 to get home in central Scott Depot, but now use the new Exit 40).  And of course, all of the Exit 44 headed for St. Albans still goes that way.

[hbelkins]

I was looking through project plans to see if anything had been prepared but I could not find anything. Nor any plans for Vankirk Drive's extension from the Beckley service plaza.

--

Parkways reviewing I-64/I-77 split at Beckley

Members of the West Virginia Parkways Authority have asked their engineers to study whether it would make sense to make some changes where Interstate 77 and Interstate 64 split south of Beckley.

[...]

The current southbound split of the interstates on the West Virginia Turnpike is marked by a long barrier wall. Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller said the engineering study will look at whether changes should be made to the length of the wall.

“It will simply ask the question, would it make sense to remove any portion of that barrier wall to allow traffic more opportunity to switch lanes if they are in the 64 lane and need to get into the 77 lane,” Miller said.

I've long thought that the split for the two routes on the southbound turnpike occurs way too early upstream, and don't understand why it's not closer to the gore point.

Same with this interchange on I-75 southbound near Lexington: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.1206532,-84.5273954,582m/data=!3m1!1e3

[SP Cook]

Were traffic volumes at the St. Albans (WV 817) exit significantly impacted by the new US 35?

Not really.  Before the building of the 4 lane US 35, the common practice was to turn right onto WV 34 just before the speed trap town of Winfield and follow this to I-64 at exit 39.  Long backups on 34 South were common, as, sadly were truck-car collisions, several fatal.

[Black-Man]

Interesting perspective Adam.

Beckley is too far from New River to tap into that activity for now, although it is pushing for new and enhanced connections to New River National Park and Preserve through new trailheads and facilities at Piney Creek.

There is also a lack of large-scale land for development at Beckley, although I guess additional hills could be moved for distribution centers. The state so far hasn't been a huge draw for those types of developments;

I was told by a reliable source (and I verified by looking at the WV funding spreadsheet) that the bike/hiking trail connecting the soccer fields to the New River Gorge via Piney Creek has been approved for funding for this year. There is also planning for a housing development along the trails near the soccer fields. Though the National Park is the attraction, outliers to the area exist. There are over 300 homes at Glade Springs as an example.

[Tom958]

I've long thought that the split for the two routes on the southbound turnpike occurs way too early upstream, and don't understand why it's not closer to the gore point.

It has to be so that heavy trucks bound for I-64 and slowed by the upward grade there don't have to choose between obstructing traffic in the center lane or moving to the right lane and missing their exit. The length might be excessive, but I'm sure a lot of thought was put into it during design. Also, the 1.2 miles from the preceding onramp to the split provides ample opportunity for getting into the correct lane.

Same with this interchange on I-75 southbound near Lexington: https://www.google.com/maps/@38.1206532,-84.5273954,582m/data=!3m1!1e3

Ha, I have no idea. 

[wriddle082]

I've long thought that the split for the two routes on the southbound turnpike occurs way too early upstream, and don't understand why it's not closer to the gore point.

It has to be so that heavy trucks bound for I-64 and slowed by the upward grade there don't have to choose between obstructing traffic in the center lane or moving to the right lane and missing their exit. The length might be excessive, but I'm sure a lot of thought was put into it during design. Also, the 1.2 miles from the preceding onramp to the split provides ample opportunity for getting into the correct lane.

I had always thought that an “exit toll plaza” had been planed for that long stretch along the I-64 carriageway, and even though it was never built they didn’t change the ramp design.

[Mapmikey]

The original I-75 SB ramp to I-64 WB was only about 600 ft from the exit gore to a 30 mph curve, so lengthening the ramp seems logical...

[seicer]

I thought that the extra long ramps from the Turnpike south to I-64 east were for toll booths but engineering plans that are available online don't show any of that. There is a modest grade that really doesn't require a climbing lane, but I-64 east of there has climbing lanes on other small grades (unlike other interstates in the state), so that could be a reason.

There is a plan to potentially modify that extra long ramp to remove confusion between the divergence. Having become very familiar with that interchange (girlfriend lives near it), vehicles will switch all over the place at the last minute to get into the correct lane. Perhaps this has gotten better since the widening on the Turnpike is all but complete.

This will all change when the Coalfields Expressway connects to the interchange at some point in the future.

[wriddle082]

There is a modest grade that really doesn't require a climbing lane, but I-64 east of there has climbing lanes on other small grades (unlike other interstates in the state), so that could be a reason.

That’s an aspect of modern rural interstate design: having climbing lanes where you wouldn’t ordinarily see them on older rural interstates.  I-24 between Nashville and Clarksville in TN has a lot of these, and it was the last major interstate link in that state to open.  I can’t remember whether or not I-79 has many of these, as much of it was a latecomer to WV as well.

[Bitmapped]

There is a modest grade that really doesn't require a climbing lane, but I-64 east of there has climbing lanes on other small grades (unlike other interstates in the state), so that could be a reason.

That’s an aspect of modern rural interstate design: having climbing lanes where you wouldn’t ordinarily see them on older rural interstates.  I-24 between Nashville and Clarksville in TN has a lot of these, and it was the last major interstate link in that state to open.  I can’t remember whether or not I-79 has many of these, as much of it was a latecomer to WV as well.

Climbing lanes are rare on I-79. There are one or two locations with them in Kanawha County, and one pair outside Morgantown. WVDOH has plans to build them on I-79 NB near Burnsville, where there is a long grade but frankly one where I've never seen the lack of climbing lanes cause issues.

I-68, which was built about the same time as most of I-79, has several sets of climbing lanes where comparable locations on I-79 don't. MDSHA went crazy with climbing lanes on their part of the highway.

[Dirt Roads]

There is a modest grade that really doesn't require a climbing lane, but I-64 east of there has climbing lanes on other small grades (unlike other interstates in the state), so that could be a reason.

That climbing grade on the Turnpike southbound at the I-64 exit is relatively short but it is still steep enough to be a problem for trucks needing to get over to the left lane to exit. That arrangement always made sense to me:  (1) Let truckers have enough time on the Crab Orchard downgrade to get over in the left lane before crossing Piney Creek); (2) Give faster traffic a chance to get around those truckers bound for I-64 before the split; and (3) provide a passing lane around those truckers after the split.  The exit essentially works like a long single lane offramp with a truck lane.

That’s an aspect of modern rural interstate design: having climbing lanes where you wouldn’t ordinarily see them on older rural interstates.  I-24 between Nashville and Clarksville in TN has a lot of these, and it was the last major interstate link in that state to open.  I can’t remember whether or not I-79 has many of these, as much of it was a latecomer to WV as well.

Climbing lanes are rare on I-79. There are one or two locations with them in Kanawha County, and one pair outside Morgantown. WVDOH has plans to build them on I-79 NB near Burnsville, where there is a long grade but frankly one where I've never seen the lack of climbing lanes cause issues.

Since I had family there for many years, I have seen double-wide trucks on the Three Lick upgrade, but indeed it was rare.  I wonder if there are more trucks on I-79 these days as relief valve for all of the truck congestion on I-81 (which is certainly lacking in northbound truck lanes).

[seicer]

There is a modest grade that really doesn't require a climbing lane, but I-64 east of there has climbing lanes on other small grades (unlike other interstates in the state), so that could be a reason.

That’s an aspect of modern rural interstate design: having climbing lanes where you wouldn’t ordinarily see them on older rural interstates.  I-24 between Nashville and Clarksville in TN has a lot of these, and it was the last major interstate link in that state to open.  I can’t remember whether or not I-79 has many of these, as much of it was a latecomer to WV as well.

Climbing lanes are rare on I-79. There are one or two locations with them in Kanawha County, and one pair outside Morgantown. WVDOH has plans to build them on I-79 NB near Burnsville, where there is a long grade but frankly one where I've never seen the lack of climbing lanes cause issues.

I-68, which was built about the same time as most of I-79, has several sets of climbing lanes where comparable locations on I-79 don't. MDSHA went crazy with climbing lanes on their part of the highway.

I think those are among the last segments of I-79 to be built in the state, too.

[SP Cook]

I think those are among the last segments of I-79 to be built in the state, too.

Correct.  Roughly, 79 was built north to south. 

[seicer]

Am I blue? WVDOH announces color scheme, informational website for Charleston interstate bridge painting project

A series of nine interstate bridges and six interstate ramps running through downtown Charleston will be painted blue with white concrete work, the West Virginia Division of Highways announced today. The painting is necessary to prolong the life of the bridges and ramps.
 
A dedicated website will also be created to keep the public informed about the massive project.
 
“This area has the highest daily traffic counts in the state of West Virginia,” said Greg Bailey, P.E., WVDOH Chief Engineer of Operations. “It’s a very visible piece of highway.”
 
On March 1, 2022, Blastech Enterprises Inc. was awarded a contract for $27,420,996.50 to clean and paint the series of bridges and ramps on Interstate 77 and Interstate 64. Funding is a combination of federal and state monies.
 
The project includes bridges over Piedmont Road, Bigley Avenue, and Court Street and ramps accessing Court Street, Leon Sullivan Way, and Brooks Street. Weather permitting, work on the bridges is expected to begin the week of Monday, April 4, 2022.
 
Contractors have planned the project with as little impact to the traveling public as possible. “However, with a project this large, there is going to be some traffic disruption,” Bailey said.
 
Contractors have developed a website, www.CarterBrooksIC.info, where the public will be able to find work schedules, detours, and other information about the project.

--

Via https://www.carterbrooksic.info/ -

The Carter Bridge/Brooks Street Interchange Project, funded by the West Virginia Division of Highways, is a bridge painting and repair project of fifteen (15) bridges on the I-77/I-64 corridor in Charleston, WV. The project footprint includes the bridges associated with the I-77/I-64 interchange (Bigley Ave. bridges/ramps) on the north side of downtown Charleston and stretches east across the Elk River and Kanawha Valley Railroad to the I-77/I-64 ramps for Leon Sullivan Way and Brooks Street.

The project was let on the February 8th, 2022, WVDOH Project Letting for a price of $27,420,996.50 to Blastech Enterprises, Inc. from Baltimore, MD. The project was officially awarded on March 1, 2022, and the contractor was given the Notice to Proceed on March 21, 2022. The Carter Bridge/Brooks Street Interchange is expected to be performed over the next 20 months with an original contract completion date of November 17, 2023.

The original bridges were built in the early 1970’s and are due for maintenance to keep them functioning properly, extending their useful lifespan for years to come. In addition to cleaning and painting the structural steel of the fifteen (15) bridges, the project will make various improvements to the existing bridges that include: concrete crack and spall repairs, concrete protective coating, bolt replacements, repair and cleaning of bridge drainage, bridge joint cleaning, access door repairs, parapet plate armoring, fence replacement, electrical and lighting repairs, and erosion repairs. The existing pedestrian bridge over I-77/I-64 and staircases will be removed as part of the project.

With the majority of the project work to be performed underneath the bridges, the traveling public should expect various roadway closures and detours to local streets as well as partial closures to parking lots under the bridges associated with the project. Additionally, nightly lane closures and various ramp closures along the I-77/I-64 corridor will occur within the project limits.

[Dirt Roads]

Am I blue? WVDOH announces color scheme, informational website for Charleston interstate bridge painting project

A series of nine interstate bridges and six interstate ramps running through downtown Charleston will be painted blue with white concrete work, the West Virginia Division of Highways announced today. The painting is necessary to prolong the life of the bridges and ramps.
 
<snipped>

Missed opportunity here.  Instead of painting the concrete white, the DOH should have considered painting them yellow.  That is the shade that we called "state road yaller" back in the 1960s.  Semi-official colors of the state and its flagship university.  For those unfamiliar, the dome of the State Capitol in Charleston was repainted in dark royal blue and "state road yellow" after the original gold leaf peeled off due to [pollutants from the local chemical industry].  It was repainted in dark royal and gold leaf sometime in Jay Rockefeller's first term (about 1978 or so).  Old-timers were upset about the blue paint, since the original was all gold leaf.  Since then, it has been repainted in all gold leaf.

Anyhow, the official colors of West Virginia University are royal blue and old gold.  But most of us still think of dark royal and state road yellow as the WVU regalia.

[seicer]

You are in luck... these bridges I have not yet photographed because they look very worn down. I'm glad they are painting both spans in differing colors - which are also the state's official colors and not the colors of the Ukrainian flag (sadly, a lot of online commenters are not aware of that).

This is not unlike the pair of bridges at Ashland, Kentucky.

Also, those ramps could stand to be diamond ground.

--



Let’s gooooooo, bridge painteers! Work underway to paint West Virginia Turnpike Chuck Yeager Bridge

Contractors have begun rigging work for a new blue and gold paint job on the Charles Chuck Yeager Bridge on the West Virginia Turnpike.
 
In June 2021, Southern Road and Bridge LLC was awarded a contract for $16,267,273.80 to completely repaint both northbound and southbound spans of the bridge. The winning bid was 11 percent lower than the engineer’s estimate for the project.
 
In honor of Yeager, a Hamlin native who was the first man to officially break the sound barrier, the decision was made to paint the bridges in blue and gold.
 
“The Yeager Bridge is an iconic bridge entering the Kanawha Valley on the West Virginia Turnpike and it is in desperate need of a full painting,” said Jeff Miller, Executive Director of the West Virginia Parkways Authority. “The West Virginia Parkways Authority is proud that Gov. Jim Justice had the vision to honor Yeager, who is one of the greatest West Virginians of all time, by painting this bridge in the official state colors of gold and blue. Not only will this help improve the overall condition and appearance of the bridges, but it is also a simple, yet classy gesture to honor this great West Virginian.”
 
The southern span of the bridge was built in 1952 as part of the original alignment of the West Virginia Turnpike. The northbound bridge was built in 1980. Plans call for the southbound bridge to be painted blue and the northbound span to be painted gold.
 
Through December 2022, contractors plan to clean and paint the steelwork below the bridge decks. The work will require intermittent lane closures on US 60 and WV 61.
 
Beginning in January 2023, contractors plan to tackle the main bridge trusses above the bridge decks. Plans call for painting both bridges at the same time.
 
Painting is expected to be complete in June 2023.

[SP Cook]

The bridges in question were named for Gen. Chuck Yeager, first man to break the sound barrier.   Who donated much of his estate and items from his military career to Marshall University, whose top scholarship is endowed by him and named for him.  But don’t let facts and logic get in the way of honoring a “flagship” university 100s of miles away..  Whatever “flagship” is.    Really they should paint a bridge in New Jersey for WVU.

More on the Rockefeller repainting of the dome.  The original golf leaf was worn away by pollution.  Rockefeller was told that re-gilding the dome would last for another 40 to 50 years.  He chose to paint it, which lasted about 18 months before it looked like garbage.  He spent the money for the sale of the gold to buy a single snow plow for Preston County DOH.  He also turned off all the lights around the capital, including the dome.

With no money to repair the dome, it looked like crap for the length of the Rockefeller era, which is very symbolic.  When Rockefeller moved on they had the dome re done in gold, and it looks great.  They burned the light 24/7/365, because, as the next governor said, “it runs on WV coal and we have a 400 years supply”>

[Removed gratuitous political name-calling. -S.]

[Dirt Roads]

You are in luck... these bridges I have not yet photographed because they look very worn down. I'm glad they are painting both spans in differing colors - which are also the state's official colors and not the colors of the Ukrainian flag (sadly, a lot of online commenters are not aware of that).

That's more like it.  Its not "state road yaller", but that certainly looks like a modern-day WVU color scheme. 

[GCrites80s]

I didn't notice it so much when I lived there since I took it at face value, but years later now when I go to Huntington and surrounding towns it really sticks out to me how many things are painted green.

I remember it seemed like the capitol dome spent most of the '80s being worked on and covered up.

[Bitmapped]

The bridges in question were named for Gen. Chuck Yeager, first man to break the sound barrier.   Who donated much of his estate and items from his military career to Marshall University, whose top scholarship is endowed by him and named for him.  But don’t let facts and logic get in the way of honoring a “flagship” university 100s of miles away..  Whatever “flagship” is.    Really they should paint a bridge in New Jersey for WVU.

More on the Rockefeller repainting of the dome.  The original golf leaf was worn away by pollution.  Rockefeller was told that re-gilding the dome would last for another 40 to 50 years.  He chose to paint it, which lasted about 18 months before it looked like garbage.  He spent the money for the sale of the gold to buy a single snow plow for Preston County DOH.  He also turned off all the lights around the capital, including the dome.

With no money to repair the dome, it looked like crap for the length of the Rockefeller era, which is very symbolic.  When Rockefeller moved on they had the dome re done in gold, and it looks great.  They burned the light 24/7/365, because, as the next governor said, “it runs on WV coal and we have a 400 years supply”>

[Removed gratuitous political name-calling. -S.]

Arch Moore's all-gold leaf design failed after several years. The gold developed streaks and was flaking off. Seems appropriate for a governor who went to prison for accepting kickbacks.

The current done scheme is a restoration of the original Cass Gilbert design. It has dark blue bars with gold leaf and was done in the mid-2000s.

[Rothman]

I didn't notice it so much when I lived there since I took it at face value, but years later now when I go to Huntington and surrounding towns it really sticks out to me how many things are painted green.

I remember it seemed like the capitol dome spent most of the '80s being worked on and covered up.

Yeah, I remember it looking like sooted up crap back in the 1990s or so.  I was pleasantly surprised to see the dome some years ago after it was last restored.

[hbelkins]

I didn't notice it so much when I lived there since I took it at face value, but years later now when I go to Huntington and surrounding towns it really sticks out to me how many things are painted green.

But not Marshall green. The generic darker green, from what I've noticed.

[GCrites80s]

Correct, getting things like carpet in Marshall green is pretty much not happening unless you pay big bucks for custom. Yet there is tons of jade and forest carpet all around town because it's the closest you can get. And the actual Marshall green paint would have too much visual impact so the darker green gets subbed in.

[SP Cook]

“Marshall green” is described as “Kelly green” and is Pantone 354 C, CMYK 80 0 92 0, RGB 0 177 64, or HEX 00B140. 

About 15 years ago, MU had a really lazy and bad AD who let Nike just use its generic green which is much darker, similar to Michigan State.  He claimed that Nike told him they couldn’t do custom colors, and one of the reporters for the local TV presented him with a jersey from North Texas, the only other school to use that exact color, which indeed Nike had done for them.  The next AD got everything redone in the correct color, but a lot of merchants were stuck with stuff that was the “wrong color” and it caused bad feelings.

Anyway, most fire hydrants in Huntington and Barboursville are painted green and white.  Other than that it is mostly private businesses doing things, not infrastructure. 

[GCrites80s]

When I lived there in the early-mid 2000s that darker green had just come off an extremely popular spell in pop culture so it didn't stick out as much as it does today where grayscale rules.