SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 67

(By Senators D. Hall, Cann, Chafin, Facemire, Green, Kirkendoll, McCabe, Plymale, Snyder, Stollings, Tucker, Unger, Williams, Prezioso, Kessler (Mr. President), Wells, Cole, Carmichael and Jenkins)

Urging the United States Congress to support funding and completion of the Coalfields Expressway and King Coal Highway.

    Whereas, The Coalfields Expressway, U. S. Route 121, was planned as a four-lane, partial-access highway approximately sixty-five miles in length, to serve an area from Interstate routes 77 and 64 near Beckley, West Virginia, to U. S. Route 23 in Virginia; and

    Whereas, The Coalfields Expressway was identified as National Highway System High Priority Corridor Number 29 in 1995; and

    Whereas, The Coalfields Expressway, when completed, will be an economic lifeline to this area of high unemployment, and will provide a modern highway, increasing the safety and efficiency of both domestic travel and commercial transport through the coalfields of southwestern Virginia and southern West Virginia; and

    Whereas, The King Coal Highway is planned as a four-lane modern artery between Bluefield and Williamson, West Virginia; and

    Whereas, In 1995, the King Coal Highway was planned as part of

High Priority Corridor Number 5 (the Great Lakes/Mid-Atlantic Corridor) pursuant to the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991; and

    Whereas, King Coal Highway, upon completion, is expected to reduce travel time between West Virginia Route 65 and Corridor G (U. S. 119) near Belo, West Virginia, to Interstate 77 at its U. S. 52 interchange near Bluefield, from 120 minutes to eighty-seven minutes; and

    Whereas, Completion of King Coal Highway is vitally important to the economic development of this area of West Virginia coalfields; therefore, be it

    Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia: 

    That the West Virginia Legislature hereby strongly urges the United States Congress to support funding and completion of the Coalfields Expressway and King Coal Highway; and, be it

    Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the Senate is hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution to the President of the United States, the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and each member of West Virginia's congressional delegation.