West Virginia Turnpike Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Busy Holiday Travel Season Anticipated For W.Va. Turnpike

“Given that Christmas Day falls on a Monday, we’ll see more travel throughout the weekend,” Miller said.

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.

Thanksgiving Holiday W.Va. Turnpike Travel Tips

An estimated 710,000 drivers will pass through the West Virginia Turnpike toll booths over the six day Thanksgiving holiday period.

Like the rest of the country, Wednesday and Sunday are expected to be the busiest of the six turnpike holiday travel days.

Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller said motorists should watch for traffic flaggers at the toll booths. He suggested those drivers without an EZ Pass move to the right lanes with the $4.25 required toll at hand.

“Don’t just stay on that left side and help disperse the traffic evenly throughout all the tolling booths,” Miller said. “We always encourage everyone to participate in our EZ Pass program. Not only is it a great discount offered at $26.25 a year for unlimited travel, but it really does provide for the fastest throughput of traffic through the tolling facilities, and really benefits everyone, even on our operations side of the process.”

Miller said if you need assistance on the turnpike, dial star (*) S-P, and a courtesy patrol member or a state police cruiser will be there within minutes.

“If you happen to run out of gas, we’ll get you a little bit of gas to get you off an exit to get filled up or if you have a flat tire,” Miller said. “It’s just such a busy time of year and there’s so much traffic that we just absolutely do not want anybody to be stuck on the side of the roadway while they’re trying to get to their friends or family to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner – or upon their return.”

Miller requested that motorists who exit the turnpike toll booths, exercise patience, caution and respect for other drivers who are merging back into regular traffic.

“Be cognizant of the speed limit signs as you go through the tolling facilities and try not to cut anybody off,” he said.

Miller said there are no construction projects on the turnpike planned for this time of year.

“There’s a requirement that traffic construction must be picked up or completed right before Thanksgiving to allow for use of the roadway,” he said. “If there is anything that does occur, just know that it is on an emergency basis and something that has to be done right away.”

Miller said West Virginia drivers can stop by the Beckley EZ Pass center or our Charleston EZ Pass center and sign up for a pass on Tuesday, and it would be activated and ready for use on Wednesday.

To get an EZ Pass, or to renew an existing EZ Pass online, click HERE. In person EZ Pass applications can be made at the West Virginia Parkways Authority EZ Pass Customer Service Center, 3310 Piedmont Road in Charleston, or at the Beckley Customer Service Center located at 12 Pikeview Drive, Beckley.

More EZPass Lanes Coming To West Virginia Turnpike Next Year

Jeff Miller, executive director of the West Virginia Parkways Authority, told state lawmakers Tuesday that the system is getting its first upgrade since 2008.

Changes are coming to the West Virginia Turnpike’s toll collection system.

Starting early next year, more EZPass lanes will be available at the West Virginia Turnpike’s toll plazas.

Jeff Miller, executive director of the West Virginia Parkways Authority, told state lawmakers Tuesday that the system is getting its first upgrade since 2008. The new system can change lanes to EZPass only, depending on traffic volumes.

Among other changes, Miller said the North Beckley toll plaza will go cashless. Drivers will either have to have an EZPass account and transponder, or they will be mailed a bill based on their license plate.

Miller said the EZPass capture rate has doubled in six years to about 70 percent.

“(In) 2017, that was at 34 percent, so we’ve almost doubled the amount of EZPass transactions that we have,” Miller said.

Not only does EZPass help reduce congestion at toll plazas, especially in the summer and around holidays, Miller said, it also helps alleviate staffing issues. It’s become harder to recruit toll collectors, he said.

West Virginia Turnpike Reopened

The West Virginia State Department of Transportation reports all lanes of the West Virginia Turnpike have reopened after a tractor-trailer carrying hazardous chemicals crashed just north of Pax near mile marker 62.

Updated at 8:30 p.m.

All lanes of the West Virginia Turnpike are open following a hazardous chemical spill that shut down the highway near Pax in Fayette County.

The accident happened in the northbound lane on the Skitter Creek Bridge just after midnight Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, when the driver lost control, jackknifed, and crossed the barrier wall. The crash blocked both northbound and southbound lanes.

The West Virginia DEP emergency response team, Pax Fire Department, West Virginia State Police, and West Virginia Parkways Authority crews contained the chemical spill early in the morning. Crews from industrial cleanup company Clean Harbors, from Nitro, arrived on site at about noon and began the chemical cleanup of the truck and roadway.

Cleanup crews were able to remove the trailer from the southbound lane and the tractor from the northbound lane and reopen the Turnpike on Thursday evening.

Updated at 12:43 p.m.

The West Virginia State Department of Transportation reports all lanes of the West Virginia Turnpike are closed Thursday morning after a tractor-trailer carrying the hazardous material, Alkyl Dimethylamine, crashed just north of Pax near mile marker 62.5.

The driver of the tractor trailer has been cited for driving under the influence (DUI).

According to officials a leak of the chemical the truck was carrying has resulted in a fish kill on Skitter Creek and further downstream on Paint Creek.

Executive Director of WV Parkways Authority Jeff Miller said the crash happened at approximately 12:30 a.m. in the northbound lane on the Skitter Creek Bridge. The driver lost control, jackknifed and crossed the barrier wall and the truck caught fire. The crash has blocked both northbound and southbound lanes.

Traffic heading north will follow Turnpike Detour A and detour at the North Beckley Exit 48 (US 19), proceed past Summersville to Interstate 79 Exit 57, then south to Charleston.

Southbound traffic will also follow Turnpike Detour A. From Charleston, traffic should follow Interstate 79 north from Charleston to Exit 57, then proceed south on US 19 to North Beckley, Exit 48.

View map of detour route.

All truck traffic should be mindful to avoid secondary roads.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s emergency response team, Pax Fire Department, West Virginia State Police, and West Virginia Parkways Authority crews are all on scene and have the spill contained. An environmental contractor is en route from Poca to begin the cleanup process.

W.Va. Turnpike Holiday Traffic Tops 884,000 Vehicles

The West Virginia Turnpike saw more than 884,000 vehicles pass through its toll booths in the week leading up to Memorial Day.

The West Virginia Department of Transportation says the total included heavier-than-expected traffic on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week.

West Virginia Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller says that could have been because travelers were trying to get out ahead of heavy rains forecast for that Thursday.

Miller said the Thursday and Friday were the “big days,” when more than 268,000 vehicles used the turnpike.

Miller said there were no significant delays for turnpike drivers over Memorial Day weekend.

Holiday Traffic Sets Record On West Virginia Turnpike

The West Virginia Turnpike has set a record for holiday travel.

From Dec. 22 to Jan 2, 1.26 million vehicles went through the Turnpike’s toll booths, a 27% increase from a year ago, the state Department of Transportation said. Both Christmas and New Year’s Day occurred on weekends.

Traffic also was up nearly 8% compared to the 2019 holiday season, which occurred prior to the start of the pandemic, the department said in a statement.

“We expected a high volume of travel based on the weather forecasts being favorable and the days of the week in which the holidays fell,” said West Virginia Parkways Authority Executive Director Jeff Miller.

The Turnpike also saw a big leap in traffic numbers during Thanksgiving week in November compared with the same week in 2020.