U.S. Route 52 in West Virginia

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U.S. Route 52
US 52 highlighted in red
Route information
Length	184.9 mi (297.6 km)
Existed	1926–present
Major junctions
South end	I-77 / US 52 at Rocky Gap, VA
Major intersections	US 460 near Bluefield WV 20 at Bluewell WV 16 / WV 103 at Welch WV 80 from Iaeger to Justice WV 44 at Mountain View US 119 in Williamson WV 65 at Naugatuck I-64 in Huntington
North end	US 52 near Chesapeake, OH
Location
Country	United States
Counties	Mercer, McDowell, Wyoming, Logan, Mingo, Pike (KY), Wayne, Cabell
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided
West Virginia State Highway System Interstate US State
Kentucky State Highway System Interstate US State Parkways
← WV 51 WV → WV 53 ← US 51 KY → KY 52

U.S. Route 52 (US 52) skirts the western fringes of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It runs from the Virginia state line near Bluefield, where it is concurrent with Interstate 77 (I-77), in a general northwest and north direction to I-64 at Kenova. There it turns east, overlapping I-64 for five miles (8.0 km) before splitting off onto the West Huntington Expressway into Ohio via the West Huntington Bridge. Despite having an even number, US 52 is signed north–south in West Virginia. In some other states along its route, it is signed east-west. The West Virginia segment is signed such that US 52 north corresponds to the general westward direction of the highway, and vice versa. For a while, US 52 parallels US 23, which is on the other side of the Big Sandy River in Kentucky. This continues into Ohio, where US 52 travels on the Ohio side of the Ohio River while US 23 travels on the Kentucky side.

Most of the route is being converted to a four-lane divided highway, but not to interstate standards. It has been designated as part of the I-73 and I-74 corridors. From I-77 south of Bluefield to near Williamson, the new highway has been referenced to as the King Coal Highway; from Williamson north to Kenova, it is the Tolsia Highway.