In light of the other thread about traffic counts, where does it surprise you that counts could be so low or have dropped?
I was checking out WVDOH's counts in West Virginia. For I-64 between Beckley and the Virginia state line, completed in 1988, traffic counts were between 12500 and 23000 in 2006. They are now between 8500 and 21500.
I-79 can drop to 11500 near Frametown.
What do you think contributed to the lower traffic count? It is not like they actually built I-73.
I-73 wouldn't have mattered. I-64 is a east-west route. I would surmise the economy and Corridor H as being direct competitors.
The economy, by far, with the secondary effect of a general decrease nationally in VMT that began even before the 2008-09 economy meltdown. Corridor H plays a very minor role there, if at all...as evidenced by the fact that VDOT traffic volumes for US 48/VA 55 at the state line have increased a whopping 100 ADT between 2006 and 2011, and are only 2300 overall per 2011 number. And no change on the stretch west of SR 628/Lebanon Church.
The 2012 traffic data has been released and the trend of no-change (state line) or tiny increase further east continues for US 48/VA 55.
Mapmikey