West Virginia Route 68 is a north–south
state highway
A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...
in northwest
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
. The southern terminus of the route is at
West Virginia Route 2
West Virginia Route 2 is a state highway in the US state of West Virginia. It generally parallels the Ohio River along the western border of the state, from U.S. Route 60 in Huntington (just west of the East End Bridge) northeasterly to U.S. ...
on the southern outskirts of
Ravenswood. The northern terminus is at
Interstate 77
Interstate 77 (I-77) is a north–south Interstate Highway in the eastern United States. It traverses diverse terrain, from the mountainous state of West Virginia to the rolling farmlands of North Carolina and Ohio. It largely supplants the ...
/WV 2 exit 179 northeast of
Parkersburg
Parkersburg is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Ohio and Little Kanawha rivers, it is the state's fourth-largest city and the largest city in the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna metro ...
. WV 2,
concurrent
Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to:
Law
* Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea''
* Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...
with I-77 south of this location, departs the expressway and continues north on the same roadway as WV 68.
History
Before Interstate 77 was completed, State Route 2 followed the Ohio River (more or less) from St. Marys, south through Parkersburg, and on southward along the river to Ravenswood, and further toward Huntington. When Interstate 77 was completed, State Route 2 was re-routed along Interstate 77 from the point where the two crossed, north of Parkersburg, to the point where Interstate 77 passes by Ravenswood. At that point, State Route 2 left Interstate 77 and continued along its former route. But the portion between where State Route 2 crossed Interstate 77 north of Parkersburg, and where it rejoined its original route in Ravenswood was established as State Route 68. It passes through downtown Parkersburg, and continues along the old State Route 2 route south to Ravenswood. It is the only state route in West Virginia that shares a number with an interstate or U.S highway, due to the commissioning of
Interstate 68
Interstate 68 (I-68) is a Interstate Highway in the US states of West Virginia and Maryland, connecting I-79 in Morgantown, West Virginia, to I-70 in Hancock, Maryland. I-68 is also Corridor E of the Appalachian Development Highway Sy ...
in 1991.
Major intersections
References
068
Transportation in Jackson County, West Virginia
Transportation in Wood County, West Virginia
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