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Tri-state Sunday afternoon drive (KY-OH-WV)

Started by hbelkins, May 05, 2021, 03:28:56 PM

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hbelkins

Took a little Sunday afternoon jaunt the other day to the Ashland area, and dipped briefly into Ohio and West Virginia.

I exited the Mountain Parkway at Exit 57, at the beginning of the major widening that extends eastward. There has been a slight realignment (HSIP project) at the intersection of KY 7 and KY 1161 north of West Liberty that will probably be incorporated when the entire new alignment of the road between West Liberty and Sandy Hook is done.

There's a widening project that has been in the works for years finally underway in Grayson on Carol Malone Blvd. (KY 7 south of US 60, KY 1/KY 7 north of US 60) that has traffic down to one lane in each direction. I think the current project will create a center turn lane along that stretch, but I"m not positive if that is what was finally decided.

There has been yet another project to widen the exit ramp from I-64 westbound to KY 1/KY 7 at Grayson. There have been several improvements done there over the years, but rush hour traffic was backing up onto the interstate, so they've added width to the ramp to extend the dualized left turn lanes.

I exited at KY 180 and took it and US 60 into Ashland, where I made a stop. I didn't go on north to see the construction on the new Russell viaduct adjacent to the new Ironton-Russell bridge, but I crossed into Ohio to access US 52. Some sort of project has both directions of US 52 down to one lane, and there has been a huge rock cut benching project southeast of the Ashland bridge access. This may have been done to eliminate the possibility of any more of the massive rockfalls that have occurred there in recent years.

All the button copy along that segment of US 52 has been replaced with shiny, reflective, Highway Gothic. Did Ohio not re-embrace Clearview when it regained interim approval?

Signage at OH 7 indicated that road was closed 24 miles ahead, and to use a marked detour which led across the Ohio River into West Virginia. I exited at US 60 in West Huntington for my first Sheetz visit in more than three years, but signage indicated that the OH 7 detour led on to I-64. Any ideas what's closed, and why? I'm presuming the detour involves I-64, WV 192 and WV 2 to Pt. Pleasant to re-cross the river on US 35.

After my Sheetz run, I stayed on US 60 and went west to Kenova, then down WV 75 to access US 52. The pavement condition of US 52 was in much better shape than I remember it being all the way to the Prichard bypass. Beyond there to Ft. Gay, the road was its typically rough self. At Ft. Gay, I crossed back into Kentucky and used KY 3 to access US 23, then followed US 460 back to the Mountain Parkway. The work to widen the remaining portions between Salyersville and Exit 57 (KY 205) is fully underway. All segments are under construction. The portion known as Magoffin County West (which actually includes the far eastern portion of Wolfe and all of Morgan) should be done later this year. A decent amount of the Magoffin County Central portion is on new-terrain alignment.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.


seicer

OH Route 7 is closed to replace 75-year-old concrete: https://goo.gl/maps/kLhHprhpPmQfV1SU7 . I've been curious as to why the detour isn't along WV Route 2; instead, they chose Interstates 64/77.

hbelkins

Quote from: seicer on May 05, 2021, 04:13:00 PM
OH Route 7 is closed to replace 75-year-old concrete: https://goo.gl/maps/kLhHprhpPmQfV1SU7 . I've been curious as to why the detour isn't along WV Route 2; instead, they chose Interstates 64/77.

All the way to Marietta, and then backtrack to Pt. Pleasant? Or off at Ravenswood and using US 33 over to Pomeroy?

Looks like there's an Ohio state route detour (553 and 218) that could also be used, in addition to a few locally-maintained routes that locals probably know about.


Government would be tolerable if not for politicians and bureaucrats.

seicer

I think they were concerned about the sharp grades and curves on those two routes for trucks - although let's be honest, few trucks used OH Route 7. It had such low traffic counts that those two routes would have been suitable except for trucks.

SP Cook

The truck detour for Ohio 7 is I-64 to US 35.  Lots of OH 7 shields on US 35, which is odd seeing an Ohio sign, 40 miles from Ohio. 

https://www.wsaz.com/2021/03/22/major-rehabilitation-project-closes-part-of-state-route-7/




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