Virginia CFX Authority Files 2025 Annual Report With Governor, General Assembly
LEBANON, VA – (December 31, 2025) -- 2025 was a year of progress for the Coalfields Expressway in Virginia, as an additional 2.74 miles of the expressway (U.S. 121) was officially opened for travel by the public in October, according to the 2025 Annual Report of the Virginia Coalfields Expressway (CFX) Authority submitted to the governor and the General Assembly earlier this week.
The Coalfields Expressway, designated as U.S. Route 121 and a Congressional High Priority Corridor, is a proposed limited-access highway to provide a modern, safe and efficient transportation artery through the coalfield region of far Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia. The proposed expressway is designed to provide safe and rapid access to communities along the corridor, with interchanges connecting citizens of Pound, Clintwood, Clinchco, Haysi, Breaks, Grundy and Slate.
The authority was formed by the General Assembly in 2017 to improve the transportation into, from, within and through Southwest Virginia; to assist in regional economic development; and to generally enhance highway safety in the affected localities of Southwest Virginia.
The year-end report, a copy of which can be viewed at https://vceda.us/wp-content/
“The completion of Corridor Q, of which seven miles of the Coalfields Expressway are a part, will be a noteworthy event for the coalfield region of Southwest Virginia and will greatly assist in the region’s economic development and interstate commerce,” said Virginia CFX Authority Executive Director Jonathan Belcher. “The Coalfields Expressway is a critical piece of infrastructure which is considered essential for the region’s future. There is still a long way to go, but 2025 saw progress in actual construction.”
The year began with efforts to raise additional matching funding to complete the four-laning of a four-mile section of Corridor Q near the Breaks Interstate Park which connects with the Coalfields Expressway. While efforts to raise the funding for the project are ongoing, the CFX Authority also continued working with the region’s legislators on efforts to get the remainder of the Coalfields Expressway added to the Appalachian Regional Commission’s Appalachian Development Highway System – a move considered critical to raising funding for the remaining sections of the expressway.
The authority also met with U.S. Senator Mark Warner in April. Warner pledged his continuing support for the road. Much of the year also was spent working with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and transportation consultants Wendy Thomas and Dan Goldfarb on an updated preliminary engineering study of the Coalfields Expressway. The study, which was commissioned by VDOT in consultation with the CFX Authority, identified how best to advance the completion of the CFX.
Key findings in the study verified completion of the CFX will provide substantial benefits in terms of safety, freight mobility, economic transition and access to essential services. The findings of the study also support the need to accelerate CFX development to position the region for industrial investment, reduce transportation barriers and support long-term diversification.
The study was officially presented at the December 11, 2025 board meeting of the CFX Authority and also identified 24 potential funding sources to explore to continue to advance the project.
“The completion of the Coalfields Expressway will open up the area for economic development and tourism, including new business and industrial sites and improved access to business and industrial parks and tourism assets such as the Breaks Interstate Park, thereby making the region much more competitive for economic development projects and tourism opportunities,” said Virginia CFX Authority Board Chairman J.H. Rivers in his message in the annual report. “The Coalfields Expressway also will allow the region’s citizens much better access to employment, educational, workforce development and health care opportunities.”
According to an economic impact analysis of the Coalfields Expressway completed in 2021 by Chmura Economics & Analytics, the cumulative economic impact of the Coalfields Expressway during a 50-year span is estimated to be $12.8 billion in 2021 dollars. The study also noted that direct construction spending on the project can support 26,246 cumulative jobs in its bi-state corridor from 2013 to 2038. The cumulative ripple effect (indirect plus induced) of capital investment can generate $1.8 billion in spending and 13,859 cumulative jobs in the corridor, the study found. The cumulative direct and ripple effect of this construction spending therefore can support a grand total of 40,105 jobs, according to the Chmura report.
Rivers noted the authority looks forward to continuing to work with the Governor’s office and the General Assembly to help advance the completion of the Coalfields Expressway in as expeditious manner as possible for the benefit of the Commonwealth’s citizens in Southwest Virginia.
The CFX Authority board is a 12-member board comprised of representatives of Buchanan, Dickenson and Wise counties and is staffed by the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA). Members of the board are non-legislative citizen members and ex-officio members. The process of the initial appointments to the authority’s board was completed in September 2020 and the authority held its first meeting quickly thereafter on October 6, 2020.
Current members of the board include Senate Committee on Rules appointees, J.H. Rivers, Wise County, chairman; Scott Mullins, Dickenson County, vice chairman; and Ed Talbott III, Buchanan County.
Appointments by the Speaker of the House include Harry Childress, Dickenson County; Don Green, Wise County; James Keen, Buchanan County; Jay Rife, Buchanan County; Ronnie Shortt, Wise County; and Keith Viers, Dickenson County.
Ex-officio members of the authority include Philip Cook, appointed by the Buchanan County Board of Supervisors; John Schoolcraft, appointed by the Wise County Board of Supervisors; and Richard Thacker, appointed by the Dickenson County Board of Supervisors.
About the Virginia Coalfields Expressway Authority: The Virginia Coalfields Expressway Authority was formed by the Virginia General Assembly in 2017 to improve transportation into, from, within and through Southwest Virginia; to assist in regional economic development; and to generally enhance highway safety in the affected localities of Southwest Virginia. The Coalfields Expressway, designated as U.S. Route 121 and a Congressional High Priority Corridor, is a proposed limited-access highway to provide a modern, safe and efficient transportation artery through the coalfields region of far Southwest Virginia and southern West Virginia. The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority provides staff support to the authority board. www.vceda.us/cfxauthority.
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PHOTO CAPTION: The addition of the new mileage to the Virginia Coalfields Expressway (CFX) in 2025 brings the total mileage of the CFX completed and open for travel in Virginia to 4.95 miles -- approximately 10 percent of the total mileage of the expressway in Virginia. An additional 2.07 miles of the expressway is expected to open in late 2027. These statistics and more are found in the CFX Authority 2025 Annual Report filed earlier this week with the governor and the Virginia General Assembly.