Published: October 01, 2009 03:28 am      

‘Finish it’ appropriate message for Corridor H

It was more than 40 years ago, back in 1965 to be exact, that work began on Corridor H, a four-lane highway that wold link Interstate 79 in North Central West Virginia with the Virginia state line.

This four-lane road was considered to be one that could and would help improve that often-lagging section of West Virginia. There were certainly high hopes for it. And the sections of the highway now open have already helped the region’s economy — especially its skiing and tourism industries.

But that was 1965. This is 2009. The highway has not been completed, and the announcement was made recently that it is still at least three decades away from being completed. The West Virginia Division of Highways has estimated that it will need another $1.2 billion to finish the 130-mile, four-lane highway — another East-West route from West Virginia into Virginia.

The Associated Press reported that the timetable for the remaining construction, one that has been repeatedly stretched, now calls for work to begin on the final 31.5 miles in 2029. There was some progress last week on the project as the ribbon was cut for the bridge over the South Branch Potomac River in Hardy County. Paving has also begun on a 10-mile section leading up to that bridge in Hardy County.

But what all this means is that in more than 40 years, Corridor H has reached its halfway point. That’s really unbelievable. And Virginia abandoned plans to build its portion of the highway in 1995. Critics of the highway point out the lack of major cities along the route while objecting to its multimillion dollar cost.

Corridor H. has long been Sen. Robert C. Byrd’s “transportation crusade.” The people have been waiting for this system for 45 years, which is far too long. “Finish it!” the 92-year-old icon said. Byrd added an extra $4.5 million for Corridor H construction to the 2010 transportation appropriations bill.

Senate Finance Chairman Walt Helmick, in addressing a group of Corridor H supporters recently in Petersburg, said that “building this road has been a trying experience. We’ve been talking about it since the ’60s, but now is the time to complete it.”

We would imagine that most of the people excited about Corridor H’s possibilities back in the 1960s have probably long since passed on or have retired. If 20 years pass before funds are made available for the final 31.5 mile-stretch, it may be time to begin replacing the concrete on the section already completed.

We feel as Sen. Byrd does. The highway has been under construction for more than 40 years. Finish it!