Interstate 77 in Virginia


Interstate 77 in the U.S. state of Virginia is a north–south Interstate Highway serving Hillsville, Wytheville, and Bland. Running parallel to U.S. Route 52, I-77 passes through the Big Walker Mountain Tunnel and East River Mountain Tunnel, the latter on the West Virginia state line and one of only two land vehicular tunnels to cross a state line.

Route description

Within Virginia, the milepost count begins from the south at the North Carolina border and ends at the West Virginia border.
For in the Wytheville area, I-77 and I-81 share the same roadway and form a wrong-way concurrency. I-77 north is signed with I-81 south and vice versa.
The southernmost involve a steep grade, up for northbound and down for southbound traffic. The southbound side has two runaway truck ramps. The lower end of the grade coincides with the North Carolina border, where the road exits the Appalachian Mountain region and levels out.
The entire length of I-77 in Virginia is also part of the proposed I-74.
I-77 crosses the following mountains:
I-77 was first opened in 1972 between I-81 in Wytheville and US 52 in Bland, which also included the Big Walker Mountain Tunnel. The Interstate was extended from Bland to the West Virginia border in 1974-1975; this extension included the East River Mountain Tunnel. In July 1977, I-77 was built between the North Carolina border and Fancy Gap, and in December, it was extended from Fancy Gap to Poplar Camp. In 1978, I-77 was built between Poplar Camp and I-81. The Interstate existed in two separate segments until 1987, when the I-81/I-77 overlap between Wytheville and Fort Chiswell was built.
I-77 in Fancy Gap has been the site of many fatal accidents, often due to fog and wind in the mountains. In November 2010, two people died as a result of a 75-vehicle pileup. On March 31, 2013, 17 crashes along I-77 led to a 95-vehicle pileup and resulted in three deaths. In September 2013, a pile-up resulted in one death.

Exit list