West VirginiaRoute 817 follows the former path of U.S. Route 35 along the Kanawha River from St. Albans, West Virginia to near Fraziers Bottom, West Virginia and resumes again between near Southside to near Henderson. As such it is actually two separate roads, connected by the 12 mile "gap" in US 35, which will, when US 35 is finished, become WV 817 as well, making the eventual route of the road from St. Albans to Henderson. The route was first signed on October 10, 2008, the day when a new section of US 35 opened to replace this stretch of road. It was extended from Winfield to the current end of the four-lane US 35 near Fraziers Bottom on June 15, 2009 when the section of US 35 that replaced it was opened. The separate section was added on November 1, 2010, when another section of US 35 opened. While US 35 formerly ended at U.S. Route 60, its new path ends at Interstate 64.
History
Prior to 1969, the route that is now WV 817 was numbered as the original West Virginia Route 17. Following the collapse of the Silver Bridge at Point Pleasant, a new bridge was built to carry U.S. Route 35 across the Ohio River. The new bridge was built slightly downstream, now south of the mouth of the Kanawha River. With the new location, West Virginia moved US 35 from the northern bank of the Kanawha River to southern bank, replacing old WV 17. The old path on the northern side of the Kanawha was numbered as West Virginia Route 62. With its new designation at US 35, this highway became the primary travel route between Charleston and Point Pleasant, and continuing in to Ohio, Columbus and Dayton. Travel on the route continued to build, overwhelming the original 2-lane corridor. The state began planning to construct a replacement 4-lane route, but insufficient funding continually prevented the project. As the state looked to develop land near Buffalo, the old 2-lane US 35 and its slow access to Interstate 64 became a major issue, further increasing the need for a new highway. When the new U.S. Route 35 highway was finally opened from Interstate 64 to West Virginia Route 34 on October 10, 2008, West Virginia Division of Highways renamed the old highway in its entirety as West Virginia Route 817. This number is in homage of the original West Virginia 17 that was on the route until 1969. When the next section was opened, the old US 35 became WV 817 as well. This number actually represents a change of plans from 2002, when WVDOH planned to keep US 35 on the route from Interstate 64 to U.S. Route 60.
Future
It is expected that WV 817 will continue to be extended along the route of the current US 35 as more of its 4-lane replacement opens.
