US 121 and US 460/Corridor Q

[hbelkins]

Thread bump...

VDOT is planning a ribbon-cutting for the big bridge(s) at the state line, with KYTC providing support. No date has yet been set, but it will probably be this fall. Going to be a huge event, with the governors and applicable federal officeholders (senators and representatives) from both states. Tentative plan is to hold it near the state line, which is the northwestern end of the bridge, with an inclement weather location indoors at Breaks Interstate Park. It's contingent on Kentucky finishing the access ramp from KY 80 near Elkhorn City to the segment that's already been built on this side of the state line. This is near the KY 1353 intersection, for those who attended my meet with this project as a focal point. We saw the bridges that had been built over KY 1353 but weren't yet open to traffic.

[Bitmapped]

Thread bump...

VDOT is planning a ribbon-cutting for the big bridge(s) at the state line, with KYTC providing support. No date has yet been set, but it will probably be this fall. Going to be a huge event, with the governors and applicable federal officeholders (senators and representatives) from both states. Tentative plan is to hold it near the state line, which is the northwestern end of the bridge, with an inclement weather location indoors at Breaks Interstate Park. It's contingent on Kentucky finishing the access ramp from KY 80 near Elkhorn City to the segment that's already been built on this side of the state line. This is near the KY 1353 intersection, for those who attended my meet with this project as a focal point. We saw the bridges that had been built over KY 1353 but weren't yet open to traffic.

Will the new US 460 be done all the way to US 23 or just to Elkhorn City?

[seicer]

I had no idea that the tallest bridge in Virginia is on US 460: https://www.wymt.com/content/news/Tallest-bridge-in-Virginia-may-finally-open-to-traffic-next-year-510372791.html

[hbelkins]

Thread bump...

VDOT is planning a ribbon-cutting for the big bridge(s) at the state line, with KYTC providing support. No date has yet been set, but it will probably be this fall. Going to be a huge event, with the governors and applicable federal officeholders (senators and representatives) from both states. Tentative plan is to hold it near the state line, which is the northwestern end of the bridge, with an inclement weather location indoors at Breaks Interstate Park. It's contingent on Kentucky finishing the access ramp from KY 80 near Elkhorn City to the segment that's already been built on this side of the state line. This is near the KY 1353 intersection, for those who attended my meet with this project as a focal point. We saw the bridges that had been built over KY 1353 but weren't yet open to traffic.

Will the new US 460 be done all the way to US 23 or just to Elkhorn City?

Just to Elkhorn City. The portion from KY 195 to KY 80 is under construction. It will include the tallest bridge in Kentucky (over Pond Creek of Draffin).

[sprjus4]

Route 460 Connector Phase I opens in Buchanan County

BRISTOL, Va. — The tallest bridges in Virginia opened to traffic today (November 16), marking a major milestone in the effort to build a new transportation corridor in the Appalachian region.

The Virginia Department of Transportation's (VDOT) Route 460 Connector Phase I project, located near Breaks Interstate Park, is the first portion of federally-designated Corridor Q in Virginia between Grundy, Va., and Kentucky to open to traffic. At 265-feet high and 1,733-feet long, the twin bridges over Grassy Creek are the tallest in the Commonwealth.

Route 460 Phase 1 is approximately 1-mile in length. In addition to the bridges over Grassy Creek, the project includes an access ramp and bridge over Hunts Creek and Route 768 to access Route 80 and nearby Breaks Interstate Park.

The project began as a design-build project in 2009, awarded to Bizzack Construction, LLC, Lexington, Ky. Construction concluded in 2015.

VDOT and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet coordinated the opening of the Route 460 Connector with the opening of a portion of Kentucky's Route 460 work.

"Kentucky's milestone of completing a portion of new Route 460 from the state line to near Elkhorn City meant VDOT would be able to open Phase I, greatly improving access for local motorists,"  Acting Major Projects Program Manager Marty Halloway, P.E. said.

Including Phase I, just under 10 miles of Corridor Q in Virginia has been constructed to rough grade, with three additional miles of construction underway on the Route 460/121 Poplar Creek Phase A project in Buchanan County.

In 2023, all the projects currently completed to rough grade will be paved and open to traffic from the state line to Route 744 at Southern Gap.

"Current circumstances created by the pandemic kept us from formally celebrating this milestone, we are looking forward to celebrating the opening of 10 miles of Corridor Q in the near future,"  VDOT Bristol District Administrator Donny Necessary said.

[hbelkins]

Needless to say, the road opened without ceremony. Kentucky was planning a socially-distanced caravan driving event to note the road's opening, but even that got scuttled.

Not sure when I'll get down to check it out, given that I'm still having car trouble.

[hbelkins]

Bumping to note the opening of another section of Corridor Q in Virginia.

https://www.wymt.com/2023/11/14/caution-urged-after-new-road-opens-connecting-states-around-breaks-interstate-park/?fbclid=IwAR3-jutauu9Mz-dYEYXXUiUPobMYQxdbBmH4nQPeKKO0zY3Ys18CKpMJ0UA

(There's a unisign US 460 marker at the end of the VA 80 connector that has erroneous VA 460 signs posted.)

I had every intention of making it down there over the long weekend to check the new road out, but I got hit with either a nasty stomach bug or an intense case of food poisoning the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving and was pretty well out of commission the rest of the week and the weekend. God willing, I plan to go check it out Saturday.

Google Maps has the new alignment now visible. It ends at Virginia SR 604.

[Mapmikey]

Bumping to note the opening of another section of Corridor Q in Virginia.

https://www.wymt.com/2023/11/14/caution-urged-after-new-road-opens-connecting-states-around-breaks-interstate-park/?fbclid=IwAR3-jutauu9Mz-dYEYXXUiUPobMYQxdbBmH4nQPeKKO0zY3Ys18CKpMJ0UA

(There's a unisign US 460 marker at the end of the VA 80 connector that has erroneous VA 460 signs posted.)

I had every intention of making it down there over the long weekend to check the new road out, but I got hit with either a nasty stomach bug or an intense case of food poisoning the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving and was pretty well out of commission the rest of the week and the weekend. God willing, I plan to go check it out Saturday.

Google Maps has the new alignment now visible. It ends at Virginia SR 604.

It wouldn't surprise me if the road is being intentionally posted as VA 460 until it connects with US 460 at Grundy.

[hbelkins]

I was wrong. The road is only open to SR 744. It's paved and striped beyond the SR 744 intersection but it's well-blocked off.

Every sign along the route is posted VA 460, and out of nowhere as you head east, US 121 is also signed.

The road is not four lanes all the way. The four-lane ends just past the VA 80 Breaks connector and the rest of the route, with the exception of a divided portion at the SR 609 intersection, is two lanes with a truck passing lane in spots and not much room for a full widening to four lanes evident.

I'll have a more detailed report later.

[Mapmikey]

I was wrong. The road is only open to SR 744. It's paved and striped beyond the SR 744 intersection but it's well-blocked off.

Every sign along the route is posted VA 460, and out of nowhere as you head east, US 121 is also signed.

The road is not four lanes all the way. The four-lane ends just past the VA 80 Breaks connector and the rest of the route, with the exception of a divided portion at the SR 609 intersection, is two lanes with a truck passing lane in spots and not much room for a full widening to four lanes evident.

I'll have a more detailed report later.

The US 121 posting is a surprise, as only the US 460 overlay portion of it is even funded in Virginia.  Hope you got pictures in case it doesn't last.  Not sure when I'll be able to get out that way.

I'm also wondering if SR 744 will be put into the primary system as a connector to VA 83.

[Tom958]

I foolishly posted on Facebook after seeing the article in the Sign Errors group. Nope, it's not an "error." 

I was wrong. The road is only open to SR 744. It's paved and striped beyond the SR 744 intersection but it's well-blocked off.

Every sign along the route is posted VA 460, and out of nowhere as you head east, US 121 is also signed.

The road is not four lanes all the way. The four-lane ends just past the VA 80 Breaks connector and the rest of the route, with the exception of a divided portion at the SR 609 intersection, is two lanes with a truck passing lane in spots and not much room for a full widening to four lanes evident.

I'll have a more detailed report later.

Thanks for that!

I read a while back that most of the remaining sections would be two lanes, and Google Maps shows single and dual sections of the proposed route on its maps.

The US 121 posting is a surprise, as only the US 460 overlay portion of it is even funded in Virginia.  Hope you got pictures in case it doesn't last.  Not sure when I'll be able to get out that way.

I'm also wondering if SR 744 will be put into the primary system as a connector to VA 83.

Is VA 744 that haul road that's VA 604 and VA 718 further south? It must be. That's also the closest match to the 8.7 miles mentioned in the article. Maybe that included paving part of the haul road, too.

As far as putting it into the primary system, I'll go one better: why not move US 460 to it and VA 83 there once the last section of new 460 in Kentucky is open? Google's alternate route from the end of KY 3174 to Grundy is already only marginally inferior to using existing 460, and a 83-744 route would be much better except for traffic headed for Grundy. Grundy traffic could use VA 609 or 604.

[Mapmikey]

Not sure when the gap in Kentucky's portion is supposed to open, but the extension of this newly opened segment connect to US 460 directly just north of Grundy is scheduled to open in 2027.

https://virginiadot.org/projects/resources/Bristol/CorridorQ/CFX_Project_Status-October_2023_acc100623_PM.pdf

[Tom958]

Not sure when the gap in Kentucky's portion is supposed to open, but the extension of this newly opened segment connect to US 460 directly just north of Grundy is scheduled to open in 2027.

https://virginiadot.org/projects/resources/Bristol/CorridorQ/CFX_Project_Status-October_2023_acc100623_PM.pdf

Thanks!

[Takumi]

Bumping to note the opening of another section of Corridor Q in Virginia.

https://www.wymt.com/2023/11/14/caution-urged-after-new-road-opens-connecting-states-around-breaks-interstate-park/?fbclid=IwAR3-jutauu9Mz-dYEYXXUiUPobMYQxdbBmH4nQPeKKO0zY3Ys18CKpMJ0UA

(There's a unisign US 460 marker at the end of the VA 80 connector that has erroneous VA 460 signs posted.)

I had every intention of making it down there over the long weekend to check the new road out, but I got hit with either a nasty stomach bug or an intense case of food poisoning the Tuesday night before Thanksgiving and was pretty well out of commission the rest of the week and the weekend. God willing, I plan to go check it out Saturday.

Google Maps has the new alignment now visible. It ends at Virginia SR 604.

It wouldn't surprise me if the road is being intentionally posted as VA 460 until it connects with US 460 at Grundy.

It also wouldn't surprise me if they change existing 460 to VA 460 once the new route is finished.

[sprjus4]

It's an instance like this where they should make the old route either US-460 Alt or just unsign it.

VA-460 and US-460 parallel is very confusing.

[74/171FAN]

It's an instance like this where they should make the old route either US-460 Alt or just unsign it.

VA-460 and US-460 parallel is very confusing.

Opening up mapmikey's VA 360 page just now, I did not realize that VDOT intended VA 360 to be US 360 ALT, but went with VA 360 after AASHTO denied US 360 ALT.

[hbelkins]

Photos are on my Flickr page.

Here's a longer recap of the trip.

I entered Virginia on VA 80, which is still fully signed as such.

Signage on the eastbound US 460 routing is unchanged pre-opening. There's no indication of VA 80 from the new route going east. There is signage westbound for VA 80.

Shortly beyond the VA 80 Breaks connector, the road narrows to two lanes with a truck lane. The only other divided section is at the SR 609 intersection.

The US 121 sign just appears randomly. There's no evidence of an intersection (either planned or currently under construction) at the point where US 121 will join the concurrency.

As noted previously, the route ends at SR 744, also known as Southern Gap Road. This road serves a park/athletic complex and an ATV trail venture and terminates at VA 83 west of Vansant. It's in terrible shape; very rough with uneven pavement. It needs to be resurfaced if it's going to serve as the major traffic connector between the new US 460 and existing US 460. I drove it down to VA 83 and back as far north as SR 604 (Poplar Creek Road), which I then took to US 460. There is construction ongoing where the new US 460 will cross SR 604, but even when that construction is complete, 604 won't be a viable access route to existing US 460 due to the narrowness of the highway, so it makes sense to close the new route at SR 744.

[WillWeaverRVA]

Photos are on my Flickr page.

Here's a longer recap of the trip.

I entered Virginia on VA 80, which is still fully signed as such.

Signage on the eastbound US 460 routing is unchanged pre-opening. There's no indication of VA 80 from the new route going east. There is signage westbound for VA 80.

Shortly beyond the VA 80 Breaks connector, the road narrows to two lanes with a truck lane. The only other divided section is at the SR 609 intersection.

The US 121 sign just appears randomly. There's no evidence of an intersection (either planned or currently under construction) at the point where US 121 will join the concurrency.

As noted previously, the route ends at SR 744, also known as Southern Gap Road. This road serves a park/athletic complex and an ATV trail venture and terminates at VA 83 west of Vansant. It's in terrible shape; very rough with uneven pavement. It needs to be resurfaced if it's going to serve as the major traffic connector between the new US 460 and existing US 460. I drove it down to VA 83 and back as far north as SR 604 (Poplar Creek Road), which I then took to US 460. There is construction ongoing where the new US 460 will cross SR 604, but even when that construction is complete, 604 won't be a viable access route to existing US 460 due to the narrowness of the highway, so it makes sense to close the new route at SR 744.

That really is a random place for a US 121 sign. The pictures are really appreciated, though. It really does look like this is in fact a new VA 460 (at least until it's finished).

[Takumi]

It's an instance like this where they should make the old route either US-460 Alt or just unsign it.

VA-460 and US-460 parallel is very confusing.

I agree, and 460 Alt does make the most sense (unless there's a shared route number between Kentucky and Virginia that's out of service in both states), but VDOT has shown with US/VA 360 that having parallel corridors with the same number doesn't bother them. Kentucky may not agree though.

[seicer]

The four-lane, undivided portion is interesting. I wonder if the goal is to simply add a median barrier and widen the roadway to add separation when traffic counts warrant? That's not a great design for 2023 unless it's at the crest of the hill and you have truck climbing lanes coming together - but that's not what this looks like.

[sprjus4]

The four-lane, undivided portion is interesting. I wonder if the goal is to simply add a median barrier and widen the roadway to add separation when traffic counts warrant? That's not a great design for 2023 unless it's at the crest of the hill and you have truck climbing lanes coming together - but that's not what this looks like.

I've not driven it nor seen project plans, so I could be wrong - but, it looks like they're simply passing / climbing lanes that overlap.

I don't know though. I would imagine, if VDOT was smart, this would be on a four lane divided highway right of way with two initial lanes constructed.

But VDOT is currently building parts of the US-58 (a rural 4 lane 60 mph divided highway) widening over Lover's Leap as 4 lane undivided, and some with a raised curb / gutter median, so who knows.

[Tom958]

The four-lane, undivided portion is interesting. I wonder if the goal is to simply add a median barrier and widen the roadway to add separation when traffic counts warrant? That's not a great design for 2023 unless it's at the crest of the hill and you have truck climbing lanes coming together - but that's not what this looks like.

Traffic counts will never warrant four lanes there. I see this as the same concept as a 2+1 passing lane, just with passing lanes in both directions. Hopefully, lane discipline will provide the buffer between traffic in opposing directions. I don't know about left turns, though. Is it limited access? I'm guessing yes.

[seicer]

The Virginia Geographic Information Network has imagery from 2023 that shows the new alignment: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=ecbe98f98c5d4d07a0724d6dffb543c1&center=-9160039.2439%2C4482199.8438%2C102100&level=16 (click the Basemap Gallery to switch to the most recent imagery)

The four-lane seems to end just past the Kentucky border. Unless VDOT plans to expand the roadway width and add a median barrier, I don't see any indication of a second carriage way graded. The aerial is not detailed enough to show right-of-way boundaries marked.

[hbelkins]

The Virginia Geographic Information Network has imagery from 2023 that shows the new alignment: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=ecbe98f98c5d4d07a0724d6dffb543c1&center=-9160039.2439%2C4482199.8438%2C102100&level=16 (click the Basemap Gallery to switch to the most recent imagery)

The four-lane seems to end just past the Kentucky border. Unless VDOT plans to expand the roadway width and add a median barrier, I don't see any indication of a second carriage way graded. The aerial is not detailed enough to show right-of-way boundaries marked.

Kentucky built most of its ADHS corridors as two-lane routes. Only US 23 and the most recent additions to the system, US 119 and US 460 in Pike County, were built as full four-lane routes.

Virginia, on the other hand, has to date built all of its corridors as four-lanes, along with a number of other routes such as US 58, Alternate US 58, and US 19 in southwestern Virginia. So it seems odd that they would leave the final segment of US 460 as a two-lane route.

[Bitmapped]

Virginia, on the other hand, has to date built all of its corridors as four-lanes, along with a number of other routes such as US 58, Alternate US 58, and US 19 in southwestern Virginia. So it seems odd that they would leave the final segment of US 460 as a two-lane route.

In 2019, US 460 only had 2600 AADT at the Kentucky state line. It doesn't get to 5000 AADT until you get past SR 609 closer to Grundy. Traffic on VA 80 by the Kentucky line is only about 720. There's a pretty strong case to be made this road is never going to get enough traffic to justify four lanes, corridor or not.

The other thing is looking at the utility and cost of building the corridor. US 19 follows a valley, was comparably cheap to build, and diverts traffic off the overcrowded I-81 corridor. US 58/Alt 58 aren't really useful for through traffic, but they at least serve to knit the far western end of the commonwealth in to the rest of the state. Again, mostly in a valley so cheap to build.

US 460 isn't really useful as a standalone corridor between Pikeville and Bluefield. It follows an indirect routing where through traffic has other existing alternatives that are comparable in time/distance. There's nothing significant past Grundy (sorry, Breaks Park) and construction costs are high due to the terrain. The rationale for building US 19, US 58, and Alt 58 as four lanes don't really apply here.