The King Coal Highway is a 93-mile portion of the I-73/74 Corridor running through West Virginia. Aimed at opening up mountainous southern West Virginia to faster and safer transportation, the four-lane highway has been designated "a high priority segment of a high priority corridor in the National Highway System."
The project is a public-private partnership between the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority and the mining company Premium Energy. As part of the partnership, the West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT) has authorized shifts in a 12-mile portion of the highway to allow private companies to remove coal and place excess material generated by coal activity in designated areas, creating the roadbed for the future highway.
The WVDOT estimates that the partnership will save roughly $145 million, bringing the estimated costs from $300 million down to $155 million. This same section's start date may also be rescheduled, moving up from 2009 to sometime in 2004. Construction will also be shortened by one year.