| US 58 | |||
| Get started | Cumberland Gap | ||
| End | Virginia Beach | ||
| Length | 507 mi | ||
| Length | 816 km | ||
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According to CITYPOPULATIONREVIEW.COM, US 58 is a US Highway in the US state of Virginia. The road forms a long east-west route through the extreme south of the state, along the borders with Tennessee and North Carolina. The route connects several regional towns in the south with the Hampton Roads conurbation around Norfolk. US 58 runs from Cumberland Gap to Virginia Beach. Quite large parts of the route have 2×2 lanes, with some short sections of freeway. However, parts are also more secondary in character. The road is 816 kilometers long, making it the longest numbered road in Virginia.
Travel directions
US 58 at Hillsville.
Southwestern Virginia
The road begins 2 miles over the Tennessee border at Cumberland Gap with a grade separated intersection with US 25 and then crosses the Virginia border. The road then runs along the foot of a more than 1000 meter high mountain ridge to the east, and has 2×2 lanes. One comes through and past some villages, and at Woodway the US 421 merges from Harlan, after which both routes start a fairly long double numbering. The road then ascends to about 700 meters and crosses Poweell Mountain. Shortly after, US 23 also merges from Pikeville in Kentucky, after which a triple numbering starts. The road runs through a narrow mountain valley and is a highway as far as Weber City, where theUS 23 turns south towards Kingsport and Johnson City in Tennessee. The road then continues to the east, through a very hilly area with a lot of forest. At the town of Bristol you cross the Interstate 81, the highway from Knoxville to Roanoke. Then US 58 merges with US 11, and US 421 continues toward Winston-Salem in North Carolina. The US 11 is already double numbered with the US 19, so that as far as the town of Abingdon a triple numbering is created. In Abingdon, US 19 exits toward Bluefield, and US 11 continues to follow I-81. US 58 then heads east, through an increasingly mountainous area, and rises to nearly 1,000 feet. The road runs right past Mount Rogers, Virginia ‘s highest peak at 1,360 feet. Then the road descends to a lower, but still hilly area. The road here runs right along the border with North Carolina just a mile away. At the village of Independence you cross the US 21, the road from Charlotte to Wytheville. From Independence, the road has 2×2 lanes and passes through Galax, then Interstate 77 at Hillsville.crosses the highway from Charlotte to Cleveland. Shortly thereafter, you cross US 52, which comes from Mount Airy in North Carolina.
Southern Virginia
US 58 at Danville.
In Hillsville, US 221 also exits toward Roanoke in the northeast. US 58 then forms a quieter main route with one lane in each direction through the rolling to hilly countryside of southern Virginia. The road still rises to about 900 meters, to cross the last ridge, the Blue Ridge, to the flatter east of the state. Here you cross the Blue Ridge Parkway, a scenic route to Roanoke. From Stuart the road again has 2×2 lanes and leads to Martinsville, a regional town with a highway ring in the shape of the US 220, the road from Greensboroto Roanoke in the north. After Martinsville the road forms a 2×2 trunk road to Danville as the road descends slowly through the wooded area. Danville is a regional city with 48,000 inhabitants. There is a highway bypass around the city and US 58 uses it. It crosses US 29, the highway from Greensboro to Lynchburg in the north. The US 360 also starts from Danville, immediately double-numbered with the US 58. After Danville the road has 2×2 level lanes again and after about 50 kilometers you reach South Boston, a small town where you cross the US 501, the road from Durham to Lynchburg. The US 360 also exits here towards Richmond, the capital of Virginia.
Southeastern Virginia
After South Boston, the 2×2 trunk road passes the John H. Kerr Reservoir, a large reservoir on the border with North Carolina. At Clarksville, it crosses US 15, the main secondary route through central Virginia to the north. You also cross the reservoir here. The road then crosses some tributaries of the reservoir and reaches South Hill where it crosses US 1, which runs parallel to Interstate 85, the highway from Durham to Richmond. Thereafter, US 58 forms an important east-west route towards Norfolk. The road continuously has 2×2 lanes with a number of highway sections. There is a short highway around Lawrenceville, and you reach Emporia, where you cross Interstate 95, the highway from Fayetteville to Richmond. Through Emporia, US 58 becomes a highway again and crosses US 301, which runs parallel to I-95. The area is then flat and low, with many forests. The road then continues its route to the east, passing through some villages. There is a short highway around Courtland, and a longer highway around Franklin. Here one crosses the US 258, the road from Murfreesboro in North Carolinato Smithfield on the James River. The road then heads to Suffolk, a sub-centre of the Hampton Roads conurbation.
Hampton Roads
The Martin Luther King Jr. Freeway at Portsmouth.
Suffolk is the first city of the Hampton Roads conurbation to come across and has 86,000 inhabitants. The city is built around swamps, the Dismal Swamp. From Suffolk, US 58 forms a 2×2 lane freeway. The US 460 from Petersburg then merges, and the US 13 from Greenville does the same, creating a triple numbering system, with 2×3 lanes. One then enters the suburb of Chesapeake, which has 222,000 inhabitants. Here is the connection with Interstate 64, Interstate 264 and Interstate 664.
US 58 then runs along with I-264 to the city of Portsmouth in one of the primary centers of the Hampton Roads conurbation. The highway has 2×2 lanes and intersects with US 17. Immediately afterwards, US 58 turns off and forms the Martin Luther King Jr. Freeway, which runs north. In the harbor area of ​​Portsmouth there is an interchange with State Route 164, after which US 58 turns east and goes through the Midtown Tunnel under the Elizabeth River. This leads to the secondary road network of the city of Norfolk. Norfolk is the main center of the Hampton Roads conurbation, but not the largest city in terms of population.
Norfolk has a population of 247,000 and US 58 runs east as Virginia Beach Boulevard, parallel to I-264. It then crosses US 460 again and to the east of the city US 13, which runs towards Philadelphia over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. They also cross the Interstate 64 again, the highway to Richmond. One then arrives at Virginia Beach, with 453,000 inhabitants by far the largest city in the metropolitan area, but not the most important center. The US 58 here forms a wide boulevard with 6 to 8 lanes. Most of the city’s commercial activities are located along US 58. The road also passes through downtown Virginia Beach, then nearly ends in the Atlantic Ocean on US 60.
History
US 58/360 east of Danville.
According to ASK4BEAUTY, US 58 was added to the US Highways network in 1932, running from Hillsville to Virginia Beach at the time. In 1934, the route was extended even further west to Cumberland Gap, on the Virginia side. In 1998, US 58 was extended a very short distance into Tennessee with the opening of a new route with tunnel.
US 58, introduced in 1932, replaced several older state highways. These were the;
- VA 12 between Hillsville and Danville
- VA 44 between Danville and Clarksville
- VA 400 between Clarksville and Boydton
- VA 12 between Boydton and Norfolk
- VA 10 between Norfolk and Virginia Beach
The major upgrade of US 58 began primarily with the US Route 58 Corridor Development Program adopted by the state of Virginia in 1989. Under this program, $600 million in bonds was approved to double US 58 to 2×2 lanes. The program has since been expanded several times.
Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap is a Tennessee village at the tristate point between Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky. The original road led to US 25 E, which passed over the 497-foot Cumberland Gap pass. This mountain pass was just north of the village and was therefore located between Virginia and Kentucky. The terminus at the time was US 25E, which briefly passed through Virginia at the time. On October 18, 1996, the Cumberland Gap Tunnel, a two-tube tunnel from US 25E, opened southwest of the village of Cumberland Gap. This tunnel connects Tennessee with Kentucky. The old road over the Cumberland Gap was subsequently broken up and made into a nature reserve. As a result, US 58 has since ended at US 25E just over the border in Tennessee.
Cumberland Gap – Bristol
The stretch from Cumberland Gap to Bristol is 160 kilometers long. About half of this has been widened to a 2×2 divided highway.
Numerous upgrades have been made between Cumberland Gap and the US 11 in Bristol. The Gate City bypass opened in October 1966, and a new 2×2 lane of US 58 opened west of Gate City in January 1970. In February 1970, a new route through the mountains opened between Duffield and Clinchport, cutting a detour around the ridge. This is directly constructed with 2×2 lanes. In March 1994 a new track opened over the mountainsides at Stickleyville with 2×2 lanes. In July 2000, a new line opened around Rose Hill and Ewing. In the mid to late 1990s, the connecting parts of these diversions on the existing route were widened to 2×2 lanes.
The result was a 50-mile 2×2 lane stretch in far west Virginia from Cumberland Gap to Jonesville, as well as the doubling of the double-numbering with US 23 between Duffield and Weber City for approximately 20 miles. The section between Weber City and Bristol has a secondary character and has remained single-lane.
Bristol – Hillsville
Between Bristol and Hillsville, US 58 covers a 170-kilometre stretch. This part of the route is largely a mountain stretch over mountain passes and follows a winding route. But limited parts of US 58 have been upgraded here.
Between Bristol and Abingdon US 58 runs over Interstate 81. This was done because US 11 and US 19 are already double-numbered on the old route. Originally there was triple numbering, but US 58 was moved to the newly opened I-81 in 1966.
Originally US 58 followed a very secondary route between Independence and Galax, US 58 then continued north of the New River longer, following what is now State Route 94. In 1979 the new, more direct route between Independence and Galax opened as a 2×2 divided highway. In the period 1984-1986, US 58 between Galax and Hillsville was widened to 2×2 lanes.
The most significant upgrade to US 58 in this region was the Hillsville South Bypass, which was constructed as a freeway and opened in August 2011. In the period 2011-2015, US 58 between Abingdon and Damascus was partially widened to 2×2 lanes. However, long stretches of winding single-lane road remain between Damascus and Independence.
Hillsville – Martinsville
The Martinsville and Danville freeway bypasses.
US 58 covers a 100-kilometer stretch between Hillsville and Martinsville. This is the easternmost portion of US 58 that has mountainous terrain. Large parts of the route are tortuous, but the road is gradually being upgraded to 2×2 lanes because no Interstate Highways run parallel to it.
The upgrade to this section of US 58 did not begin until the mid-1990s, except in the immediate vicinity of Martinsville, where a short section had previously been widened to 2×2 lanes. In the mid-1990s to late 1990s and early 2000s, the section of Stuart around Spencer was widened to 2×2 lanes just before Martinsville, just before Martinsville. In 2002 the entire stretch from Stuart to Martinsville had 2×2 lanes. The Stuart bypass opened around 2003. About 2005, a 2×2 diversion of Meadows of Dan opened. Around 2015-2016, the section between Laurel Fork and Meadows of Dan was widened to 2×2 lanes, partly with reroutes.
The most high-quality upgrade was the Martinsville bypass, a new freeway well outside the city. The freeway was originally only part of US 220 as a western bypass, the section between both branches of US 220 opened to traffic in 1977. The rest of the Martinsville bypass opened in 1993, so that US 58 would no longer run through the city from that point on, but through the Southern Beltway.
In 2021, a $300 million project began to widen 12 kilometers of US 58 over Lovers Leap Mountain to 2×2 lanes. This was one of the few remaining single-lane sections of US 58, due to the mountainous terrain, costs were high and other sections were prioritized.
Martinsville – South Hill
US 58 travels 170 kilometers through rolling terrain between Martinsville and I-85 at South Hill. The biggest upgrade here was the freeway bypass of Danville, furthermore this route has been completely widened to a 2×2 divided highway.
As early as 1949, the first section of US 58 eastwards from Danville was widened to 2×2 lanes, initially a few miles, but by 1955 the 2×2 section stretched 15 miles east of Danville. By 1960, the entire 50-mile stretch between Danville and South Boston had been widened to 2×2 lanes. During the 1960s, the stretch from Martinsville to Danville was widened to 2×2 lanes. During the 1970s, much of the route between South Boston and Clarksville was widened to 2×2 lanes. It was not until the 1990s that the section between Clarksville and South Hill was widened to 2×2 lanes. In 2002, a new 2×2 lane southbound bypass of South Hill opened. In 2006, the Clarksville bypass which has the characteristics of a freeway opened.
The most prominent upgrade was the Danville expressway, a freeway bypass around the city of Danville. The original route through the city was Riverside Drive, today the Business Route of US 58. This section also has 2×2 lanes. The Danville bypass partially coincides with US 29, this is also the oldest part of the bypass. The Danville Bypass was originally developed as State Route 265. Its first section opened in 1982, between the North Carolina border and just before the Dan River. In 1986 it was extended to State Route 73 and in 1988 to US 58 east of Danville, opening the entire southern bypass of Danville. In 2005, the southwest portion of the Danville Bypass opened, allowing through traffic on US 58 to bypass the entire city.
South Hill – Suffolk
US 58 at Emporia.
US 58 travels 150 kilometers between I-85 at South Hill and Suffolk, the first satellite town of the Hampton Roads region. This section of US 58 is more of a through road character as it is also the fastest route from the cities of North Carolina to the urban Hampton Roads region around Norfolk. The route has been widened in its entirety to 2×2 lanes.
In June 1963, the Lawrenceville bypass opened to traffic. In 1967 the section between Courtland and Franklin was widened to 2×2 lanes, as well as between Holland and Suffolk. In the 1960s, much of US 58 between I-85 at South Hill and I-95 at Emporia was widened to 2×2 lanes. During the 1980s, several major route diversions and bypasses were opened to traffic. The Franklin and Holland diversion opened in 1982-1983, the Courtland diversion in 1984 and the Emporia bypass in 1987, all with 2×2 lanes. The road between Emporia and Courtland was still a single carriageway. Between 1987 and 1991, the 35-kilometer stretch between I-95 at Emporia and Courtland was widened to a 2×2 divided highway. The road was previously known as the ‘suicide strip’.
Hampton Roads Region, Norfolk
Virginia Beach Boulevard (US 58) between Norfolk and Virginia Beach.
In 1922, Virginia Beach Boulevard, a 30-mile road between Norfolk and Virginia Beach, was completed. This road connected the up-and-coming resorts on the Atlantic coast with the center city of Norfolk.
In 1942-1947, US 58 between Suffolk and Bowers Hill at Chesapeake was widened to 2×2 lanes. This is the oldest section of US 58 that already had 2×2 lanes. In 1975 the Suffolk freeway bypass opened to traffic. This gave the Hampton Roads region a better approach from the west.
The Virginia Beach Boulevard between Norfolk and Virginia Beach was one of the first thoroughfares in the region to be widened to 2×2 lanes, as early as 1950, US 58 in eastern Norfolk was widened to 2×2 lanes. In 1956, the entire stretch between Norfolk and Virginia Beach had a minimum of 2×2 lanes. In 1967 the Virginia Beach Expressway ( Interstate 264 ) opened parallel to US 58. This was originally a toll road so that much traffic continued to use US 58. Later, the Virginia Beach Expressway became toll-free. US 58 remained a very busy corridor due to the large amount of retail and the road has been further widened, especially near Norfolk, to up to 2×4 lanes.
On September 6, 1962, the single-tube Midtown Tunnel between Portsmouth and Norfolk opened to traffic. This was a toll road at the time, but became toll-free in 1989. The Martin Luther King Freeway section of Portsmouth probably also opened in 1962, and until 2005 was a stretch of highway unconnected to other freeways.
A second tunnel tube of the Midtown Tunnel in Norfolk was constructed between 2012 and 2016, after which the old tube was renovated until 2018. Construction is toll-funded. The MLK Freeway has also been extended 1 kilometer south to I-264, making it easier for traffic from the southwest to Norfolk. This extension was originally planned as a toll road, but in 2015 tolls were waived. The MLK Freeway extension opened to traffic on November 30, 2016.
