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The Coalfields Expressway Authority today released Economic implications Related to the Completion of the Coalfields Expressway, an economic development impact study commissioned by the Coalfields Expressway Authority through the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at Marshall University . The study was done with the aid of U.S. Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV) and co-authored by Dr. Calvin A. Kent and Kent N. Sowards of Marshall University .

According to Richard Browning, Executive Director of the Coalfields Expressway Authority, the study has been in the works for at least two years and was completed at Marshall University at the urging of Congressman Rahall. “We are pleased that an entity with stature and credibility of the CBER and Marshall University undertook and completed the study. Dr. Calvin Kent is a well known economist in West Virginia as well as the United States . Needless to say, we are very satisfied with the findings and results of the study,” Browning stated.

The study received more emphasis recently because so much of Governor Joe Manchin's (D-WV) six-year plan for highway construction in West Virginia was based on economic development potential for the new road construction. Coalfields Expressway Authority Board Chairman Michael Goode commented, “As far as I can tell, none of the Economic Development Agencies in the counties served by the expressway were contracted concerning the economic potential of the expressway prior to the release of the six-year plan. This study should provide the decision-makers within the Governor's office and the West Virginia Division of Highway solid economic data on which to base new decisions or re-assessments of old decisions for road building in West Virginia .”

The study investigated four different factors measuring potential economic impact:

Description of the baseline economic conditions and trends in the area served by the highway
Highlights of factors which relate to economic development in an area
Discussion of economic impacts associated with the construction of the Coalfields Expressway
Outline of considerations for public policies to maximize benefits for construction of the Coalfields Expressway

“This shows with absolutely no doubt that a strong correlation exists between good roads and aggressive economic development in an area. Research links a region's level of economic development with its isolation. If an area has a good, modern transportations system, then economic diversity exists, which translates into a better quality of life for people living there. This study points that out,” Goode added.

Browning stated, “The study showed that the Coalfields Expressway counties Raleigh , Wyoming , and McDowell, with the exception of Raleigh in some cases, ranked far behind that nation and other WV counties in all measures of economic conditions. Raleigh County is unique in the study because, even though it lags behind WV and the nation in some categories, it is served by interstates and other four-lane roads. The fact that it is ahead of thither two counties which will be served by the highway and because it has a better transportation system now shows what the other counties could be with better transportation such as the Coalfields Expressway.”

Browning added that the study confirms what we already knew and have known for a long time: good roads bring economic prosperity.

Dr. Kent and Mr. Sowards concluded the study by saying that the data did confirm that the presence of the Coalfields Expressway would make a significant improvement in the region's economic conditions.