Opinion
‘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!
- Opinion
-
-
Yes to Second Amendment, no to state sales tax holiday on gun sales
Every once in a while, our state Legislature creates new legislation that leaves many of us in the general public scratching our heads.
Such is the case of The Second Amendment Appreciation Act which reserves the second weekend in October as an amnesty period during which there would be no 6 percent state sales tax on the purchase of pistols and rifles.
Don’t get us wrong. We fully believe in the right to bear arms.
-
Student protestors get great civics lesson
Senior projects may be an issue for East Fairmont High School seniors, but we believe a large group of them demonstrated that they were paying attention in civics class.
-
North Marion girls impressive in defending championship
The North Marion girls’ basketball team this past season was quite predictable.
It was probably only a few minutes after the Huskies won the 2009 Class AAA championship in the state high school tournament in Charleston that the first fan predicted that “we’ll win it again next year.”
-
Elders deserve more relief via in-home care funding
In February, the Gazette reported that more than 900 fragile West Virginia elders had qualified for in-home care, but were getting no help because the Manchin administration says there is no money left for that program.
-
Mine officials’ swift action may have saved lives
While it was hard to watch Patriot Coal Corp.’s Federal No. 2 Mine halt production a few times over the past month, we have to believe that swift action on the part of mine, union and federal officials may have saved lives.
Stopping mining at the operation means placing a financial burden on the miners who work there, we understand, but conditions were such that an explosion like the one that took the lives of 12 miners just four years ago in Sago was possible.
-
Voters: Scrap it and rewrite it
A few weeks.
A lot can happen in a few weeks. Just think, a few weeks ago, we were all lamenting the snow and poor road conditions. Now we’ve had enough spring-like weather over the past couple of days that the only snow left is the clumps in parking lots from the plows. And even those are melting faster than a Dairy Creme Corner ice cream cone on a hot July day.
-
Area women’s basketball programs have come long way
For many years, women’s basketball just seemed to many observers to be just something for young girls and women to do prior to the “real games” being played by boys and men. It took a long time before women’s games were even covered by the media — and that includes radio and television as well as newspapers.
Fortunately, opinions have changed over the years.
-
City must practice responsible fiscal policy
The employees of the City of Fairmont have a reason to celebrate.
For the first time in three years, since a water crisis crippled the city and its finances in the early months of 2007, employees will get one-time pay increases worth about $750.
-
Laws needed to regulate development of resources
The Marcellus shale formations, which extend throughout the Eastern United States, remain a largely untapped reserve of natural gas. And that makes it a prime target for energy development.
But local legislators want a little regulation when it comes to the extraction of the natural resource. Drillers tap millions of gallons of water from streams and rivers so as to bore into the rock formations that trap the state’s abundant reserves of natural gas.
-
Broadband access vital to state’s future
The Mountain State is receiving $126.3 million in federal stimulus funding for a proposed statewide broadband infrastructure project.
- More Opinion Headlines
-
Yes to Second Amendment, no to state sales tax holiday on gun sales
