Busy Holiday Travel Season Anticipated For W.Va. Turnpike 

The West Virginia Parkways Authority is gearing up for a busy Christmas holiday travel season. 

Officials say the West Virginia Turnpike will see 1.33 million transactions over the 13-day holiday travel period from Thursday, Dec. 21, through Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024.

Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller said forecasted rainy weather and above average temperatures over Christmas will likely mean more travelers will use the turnpike.

“Given that Christmas Day falls on a Monday, we’ll see more travel throughout the weekend,” Miller said. “That may allow more people to get out and get to their destinations over the course of Saturday and Sunday and then return mid week.” 

Miller said peak travel times are expected most days from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. 

“So we do expect a slight increase over last year’s traffic and we expect it will be in line with 2017 when both Christmas and New Year’s fell on a Monday.” 

Turnpike traffic volume is expected to be about the same as 2022 travel figures, or slightly higher at just below 1.3 million.

Drivers are reminded to be respectful and pay attention to flaggers who will be positioned at the turnpike to direct people to the right lane of the toll plaza and encourage smooth traffic flow.

The West Virginia Parkways Authority said it is anticipating more mid-week travel than usual from Tuesday to Thursday after Christmas. This is credited to a football bowl game between the West Virginia University Mountaineers and the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. The game will be held in Charlotte, N.C. on Wednesday, Dec 27, at 5:30 p.m.