October 2, 2024 - Seven construction firms have submitted bids to extend King Coal Highway to Littlesburg Road, a 2.5-mile stretch of four-lane highway.

Construction is expected to begin in spring 2025.

“We’re ready to build this road,” state Transportation Secretary Jimmy Wriston said in the announcement. “The people in southern West Virginia deserve this road, which will open up the area for business and make travel safer.”

When this section is complete, Littlesburg Road will have a direct link to Rt. 460 and I-77, also opening better accessibility to Bluewell, Rt. 52 and McDowell County. King Coal Highway, a four-lane highway, will eventually stretch approximately 95 miles and run through McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, Wyoming and Wayne counties from US 119 near Williamson to Interstate 77 in Bluefield. The highway is designed to open West Virginia’s southern coalfields to economic development.

Development of the King Coal Highway has been underway since the 1990s, but bogged down for lack of funding before Gov. Jim Justice revitalized the project in 2018. A two-mile section of the King Coal Highway connecting Airport Road to Interstate 77, and a four-mile section connecting US 119 to Belo north of Williamson are currently open to traffic. About 10 miles between Red Jacket and Mountain View is also open.

The almost 3-mile stretch from Airport Road to John Nash Boulevard near Bluefield opened in December 2023.

A link from Littlesburg Road to Montcalm is an approximately $107 million project and is currently in the planning stage.