AASHTO Journal - West Virginia Celebrates ‘Roads to Prosperity’ Program

Governor Jim Justice (R) and the West Virginia Department of Transportation recently celebrated the seven-year anniversary of the state’s $2.8 billion “Roads to Prosperity” program on the steps of the state capitol in Charleston; a program that has completed 1,320 projects to date.

[Above photo by WVDOT]

As part of the ceremony, 1,320 WVDOT highway workers held a card representing one of the projects made possible by program, highlighting the significant improvements the initiative made to the state’s surface transportation infrastructure.

“I look behind me at the 1,320 incredible WVDOT folks that represent the total number of projects that were on the books for decades,” the governor said in a statement.

“I cannot thank the [WVDOT] folks enough for the unbelievable work they’ve done and that they will continue to do. Roads are being fixed in every corner of West Virginia,” he said. “We’ve created tens of thousands of jobs, our tourism is skyrocketing, and people around the world are taking notice.”

[Editor’s note: The West Virginia Parkways Authority – a division of the WVDOT that manages the 88-mile-long four-lane West Virginia Turnpike toll highway between Princeton and Charleston – recently made major upgrades to its internal systems, website, and phone system to improve “self-service” functions for customers.]

The program included major projects such as the $224 million effort to replace or upgrade 26 bridges along Interstate 70 in Wheeling and the $254 million project to expand I-64 to six lanes between Nitro and the US 35 exit, which also replaced the Donald M. Legg Memorial Bridge with two new spans.

The “Roads to Prosperity” initiative also funded smaller bridge, paving, and slide repair projects in every county—many of which might have remained untouched for years without this effort.

[Editor’s note: In 2022, WVDOT and the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture, and History established “cultural exhibit” at the State Culture Center in Charleston to highlight the program.]

“Our infrastructure was off track due to decades and decades of underinvesting,” noted Jimmy Wriston, WVDOT secretary. “The bold vision of Gov. Justice changed that. His vision got us on the launch pad for the rocket ship ride. None of that would have made any difference if it wasn’t for our WVDOT workers. We are all connected. We are all pulling the rope together in the same direction, and our connections are much stronger.”