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07-16-2016, 12:51 PM
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10,147 posts, read 14,283,650 times
Reputation: 1782
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wanderlust76
I agree about the road system but in my opinion I-68 should connect to the I-470/Route 2 in Wheeling. If it connects to Moundsville like the ancient Route 250 does, the problem is Route 2 is not an attractive road for travelers, commercial vehicles, and commuters. I'm guessing it would cost a fair amount less money though to connect it to Moundsville. There are people that do not want I-68 expanded because it would change traffic patterns and there's a certain state that benefits greatly right now due to how the road system is designed.
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Completing I-68 would divert a lot of the PA Turnpike traffic through West Virginia, increasing not only accessibility for goods and services, but also hotel stays, gasoline sales, and restaurant usage... that would greatly increase tax collections as well. It would be a worthwhile endeavor even if they put a toll on it, and it would decrease travel time from I-79 to the West and vice versa by at least 20 minutes each way. |
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07-16-2016, 10:09 PM
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Location: SW Pennsylvania
854 posts, read 1,469,783 times
Reputation: 819
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The Northern Panhandle's population is older than the national average too. The death rate is higher than the birth rate accounting for a lot of the population loss. The same thing is happening in Greater Pittsburgh also, but to a lesser extent.
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07-17-2016, 06:37 PM
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Location: Ohio via WV
629 posts, read 722,882 times
Reputation: 460
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Quote:
Originally Posted by CTMountaineer
Completing I-68 would divert a lot of the PA Turnpike traffic through West Virginia, increasing not only accessibility for goods and services, but also hotel stays, gasoline sales, and restaurant usage... that would greatly increase tax collections as well. It would be a worthwhile endeavor even if they put a toll on it, and it would decrease travel time from I-79 to the West and vice versa by at least 20 minutes each way.
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Expanding I-68 would be the most pointless thing WV could possibly do. It takes one hour to get from Morgantown to Wheeling. Shortening that drive by 15 minutes while taking the interstate through one of the most sparsely populated areas of the state (Wetzel County/15k people) is absolutely pointless. That would be pork-barrel spending at its finest. We're talking several hundred million dollars to run an interstate through places like Fairview, Hundred, and Cameron. Robert C. Byrd would be proud. |
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08-11-2016, 02:52 PM
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10,147 posts, read 14,283,650 times
Reputation: 1782
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I disagree. Those areas would blossom with new plastics industry and transient businesses if I-68 were to be completed. Have you ever been to Breezewood on the PA Turnpike? I-68 would divert a lot of that traffic through West Virginia because travel on the Turnpike is expensive, and because it would be a shorter alternative from DC/Baltimore to the Midwest than the Turnpike. If we even got just 30% of the business that goes to Breezewood it would be huge, and plastics production facilities are not space intensive, so they would be ideal for that area. A good example is the Silgan facility outside Wheeling near the PA line. It employs hundreds but takes up relatively little space.
We're throwing tens of millions at building roads with a traffic load of 15,000 vehicles per day or less in areas with far less development potential than an expanded I-68 would provide. I agree with 304 that WV 2 in its present condition is not desirable, but taking the road to Moundsville would put it immediately adjacent to the new cracker facility on the Ohio side and Ohio Route 7 is a desirable route to take to I-470.
Also, as part of the Interstate system, 80% of the construction cost would be paid by the Federal Government.
Last edited by CTMountaineer; 08-11-2016 at 03:00 PM..
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08-30-2016, 01:52 AM
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Location: Morgantown, WV (Native Texan)
871 posts, read 952,211 times
Reputation: 396
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West Virginia losing more people than any other state
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08-30-2016, 03:09 AM
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778 posts, read 700,997 times
Reputation: 425
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Colt .45
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Poorly worded article. West Virginia did not lose more people than any other state. That statement is tied to raw numbers as in 2,000 people moved away. West Virginia had the largest percentage of decline in net population is what this article means to say.
All states have people move out and move in as well as having new residents born and existing residents die. These factors when computed together for a net population and in that regard West Virginia had the largest drop. It did not have the most people away. That would be California. That state has lost 5 million people in the last ten years but has seen 3.9 million move in. That is an average of 500,000 lost each year for California, West Virginia is reported to have lost 6,100 last year. |
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08-30-2016, 03:36 AM
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Location: Morgantown, WV (Native Texan)
871 posts, read 952,211 times
Reputation: 396
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Caden Grace
Poorly worded article. West Virginia did not lose more people than any other state. That statement is tied to raw numbers as in 2,000 people moved away. West Virginia had the largest percentage of decline in net population is what this article means to say.
All states have people move out and move in as well as having new residents born and existing residents die. These factors when computed together for a net population and in that regard West Virginia had the largest drop. It did not have the most people away. That would be California. That state has lost 5 million people in the last ten years but has seen 3.9 million move in. That is an average of 500,000 lost each year for California, West Virginia is reported to have lost 6,100 last year.
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the bottom line is, more people leave WV then come into........WV is a dying state..... |
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08-30-2016, 05:01 AM
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79,850 posts, read 41,663,542 times
Reputation: 16988
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More room for me.
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08-30-2016, 08:56 AM
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4,079 posts, read 3,347,943 times
Reputation: 1234
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Colt .45
the bottom line is, more people leave WV then come into........WV is a dying state.....
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Dying in some areas, thriving in others (like the Eastern Panhandle). |
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08-30-2016, 11:07 AM
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1,872 posts, read 1,958,317 times
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The Eastern Panhandle will eventually level off once the cost of living creeps closer to the surrounding areas.
As mentioned many times, WV has been slowly declining for decades and no plans were developed or put in place to help usher in inevitable economic changes. There is potential revenue in areas such has green energy, expanded tourism, marijuana legalization and a few other industries. It's just a matter of electing the right people to move these plans forward. Instead the majority of WV citizens are content with hanging on to the past, resisting change and remaining ignorant.
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