State Route 40 (SR 40) is a primary state highway in the southern part of the U.S. state of Virginia. It runs from SR 8 at Woolwine east to SR 10 at Spring Grove, about half the width of Virginia. It is the longest state-numbered (not U.S. or Interstate) route in Virginia.

State Route 40 marker
State Route 40
Route information
Maintained by VDOT
Length227.689 mi[1] (366.430 km)
ExistedJuly 1, 1933[2]–present
Tourist
routes
Virginia Byway
Major junctions
West end SR 8 at Woolwine
Major intersections
East end SR 10 / SR 646 at Spring Grove
Location
CountryUnited States
StateVirginia
CountiesPatrick, Franklin, Pittsylvania, Halifax, Campbell, Charlotte, Lunenburg, Nottoway, Dinwiddie, Sussex, Surry
Highway system
SR 39 SR 41

Route description

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View east along SR 40 in Surry County

SR 40 begins at SR 8 at the small community of Woolwine. It heads northeast along the eastern side of the Blue Ridge, crossing streams and foothills via a curving route. Around Endicott, the highway starts to turn east, away from the ridge, and straightens out as the terrain becomes flatter. Between Ferrum and Rocky Mount, SR 40 parallels the Norfolk Southern Railway's north–south Winston-Salem District. The route intersects U.S. Route 220 Business (US 220 Business) in downtown Rocky Mount and the newer US 220 bypass to the east, soon splitting from SR 122, which leads northeast to Bedford, and turning directly east. After it leaves Rocky Mount, SR 40 heads east, largely along a newer alignment that utilizes cuts and fills to provide a straight and level path. Approaching Gretna, it intersects the US 29 bypass, and then US 29 Business in downtown Gretna. This portion of the highway ends where it meets US 501 at North Halifax, turning north and crossing the Roanoke River into Brookneal.[3]

US 501 and SR 40 split in downtown Brookneal, with US 501 heading northwest and SR 40 leaving to the northeast, but soon turning east. The highway passes through Phenix on its way to Charlotte Court House, where it intersects SR 47 with a brief overlap. Inside Keysville, SR 40 meets the north end of SR 59 and crosses US 15/360 Business, and then crosses the US 15/US 360 bypass outside the town limits. Just beyond, the short SR 385 provides access to Southside Virginia Community College. SR 40 joins SR 49 at Lunenburg, overlapping that route to downtown Victoria. From Victoria east to downtown Kenbridge, where it meets the west and north ends of SR 137 and SR 138, SR 40 parallels the abandoned Virginian Railway. The route leaves Kenbridge to the northeast, running past the north end of SR 46 to a junction with US 460 Business in downtown Blackstone.[3]

After a short overlap with US 460 Business, SR 40 leaves to the east, while the business route continues northeast back to US 460. Because SR 40 is south of US 460 Business on both sides of the overlap, SR 40 does not intersect US 460 here. Outside the town limits, SR 40 crosses through Fort Barfoot. The route crosses US 1 in McKenney and I-85 at exit 42 just to the east. After bypassing Stony Creek to the south, SR 40 crosses US 301 and I-95 at exit 31; a short State Route 40 Business follows the original route through Stony Creek, returning to SR 40 on the east end via a short overlap with US 301. Between Sussex and a point east of Homeville (where SR 40 crosses SR 35), a secondary route to the south is the former alignment, now named Old Forty Road. Beyond Homeville, the last stretch of the highway heads northeasterly, crossing US 460 in Waverly before ending at SR 10 at Spring Grove. State Route 646, a secondary highway, continues northeast beyond SR 10 to the former end of SR 40 in Claremont.[3]

Major intersections

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CountyLocationmi[1]kmDestinationsNotes
PatrickWoolwine0.0000.000  SR 8 (Woolwine Highway) – Stuart, FloydWestern terminus
Franklin  SR 860 (Shooting Creek Road)former SR 109 west
Ferrum  SR 602 (Ferrum Mountain Road) – Speedway, Callawayformer SR 245 north
Rocky Mount32.07851.625 
 
 
US 220 Bus. north (North Main Street)
Western end of US 220 Bus. concurrency
32.10851.673 
 
 
US 220 Bus. south (North Main Street)
Eastern end of US 220 Bus. concurrency
33.170–
33.325
53.382–
53.631
  US 220 – Roanoke, Martinsvilleinterchange
34.25155.122 
 
SR 122 north (Booker T. Washington Highway) – Smith Mountain Lake, Bedford, Booker T. Washington National Monument, Smith Mountain Lake State Park
Southern terminus of SR 122
Penhook  SR 890 (Snow Creek Road) – Martinsvilleformer SR 108 south
Pittsylvania63.365–
63.506
101.976–
102.203
  US 29 – Lynchburg, Danvilleinterchange
Gretna64.481103.772 
 
US 29 Bus. (Main Street) – Lynchburg, Danville
HalifaxCody  SR 603 (Cody Road) – Republican Grove, Volensformer SR 126 south
North Halifax89.645144.270 
 
 
 
US 501 south (L.P. Bailey Highway) / SR 632 east (Hog Wallow Road) – Halifax, South Boston
Western end of US 501 concurrency
CampbellBrookneal91.459147.189 
 
US 501 north (Lynchburg Avenue) – Lynchburg
Eastern end of US 501 concurrency
CharlottePhenix   SR 727 / SR 1008 (Washington Avenue) – Red House, Appomattoxformer SR 26 north
  SR 746 (Scuffletown Road) – Cloverformer SR 26 south
Charlotte Court House110.884178.451 
 
SR 47 south (Legrande Avenue)
Western end of SR 47 concurrency
110.991178.623 
 
SR 47 north (Thomas Jefferson Highway) – Pamplin City
Eastern end of SR 47 concurrency
Keysville119.908192.973 
 
SR 59 south (Merry Oaks Drive) – Drakes Branch
Northern terminus of SR 59
120.028193.166 
 
 
 
 
 
  US 15 Bus. north / US 360 Bus. east / SR 765 (Front Street) – Farmville, Richmond
Western end of US 15 Bus. / US 360 Bus. concurrency
120.571194.040 
 
 
 
 
 
US 15 Bus. south / US 360 Bus. west (Old Kings Highway) – Clarksville, Danville
Eastern end of US 15 Bus. / US 360 Bus. concurrency
120.941–
121.015
194.636–
194.755
   US 15 / US 360 – Richmond, Farmville, Clarksville, Danvilleinterchange
LunenburgLunenburg133.384214.661 
 
SR 49 south (Courthouse Road) – Chase City
Western end of SR 49 concurrency
Victoria 
 
 
 
 
 
  SR 40 Truck east / SR 49 Truck north / SR 1024 (Tidewater Avenue)
136.772220.113 
 
  SR 49 north (Main Street) / SR 1002 (8th Street) – Crewe
east end of SR 49 overlap; west end of SR 49 Truck overlap
 
 
 
 
 
 
  SR 40 Truck west / SR 49 Truck south / SR 661 (West 6th Street)
east end of SR 49 Truck overlap
  SR 635 (Oral Oaks Road)former SR 136 south
Kenbridge143.559231.036 
 
 
 
  SR 137 east / SR 138 south / SR 1115 (5th Avenue) – Alberta, South Hill
Western terminus of SR 137; northern terminus of SR 138
NottowayBlackstone153.198246.548 
 
SR 46 south (Brunswick Road) – Lawrenceville
Northern terminus of SR 46
154.446248.557 
 
 
US 460 Bus. west (Church Street) – Crewe, Nottoway, Farmville
Western end of US 460 Bus. concurrency
154.968249.397 
 
 
US 460 Bus. east (North Main Street) – Petersburg
Eastern end of US 460 Bus. concurrency
DinwiddieMcKenney175.611282.619  US 1 (Boydton Plank Road) – Petersburg, South Hill
176.171–
176.314
283.520–
283.750
  I-85 – Petersburg, South HillExit 42 (I-85)
Sussex193.394311.237 
 
 
SR 40 Bus. east (Lee Avenue) – Stony Creek
Western terminus of SR 40 Bus.
Stony Creek194.434312.911  
 
 
US 301 / SR 40 Bus. west (Blue Star Highway)
Eastern terminus of SR 40 Bus.
194.515–
194.671
313.042–
313.293
  I-95 – Petersburg, EmporiaExit 31 (I-95)
   SR 626 / SR 735 (Courthouse Road) – Sussex CH, Yale, Virginia Department of Corrections Southamptonformer SR 308 south / SR 351 north
Homeville207.713334.282  SR 35 (Jerusalem Plank Road) – Petersburg, Courtland
Waverly215.569346.925  US 460 (County Drive) – Petersburg, Suffolk
SurrySpring Grove227.689366.430   SR 10 (Colonial Trail West) / SR 646 (Swanns Point Road) – Claremont, Hopewell, Surry, Jamestown Ferry, WilliamsburgEastern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Special routes

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Victoria Truck Route

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State Route 40 Truck
LocationVictoria
 
SR 40 Truck and SR 49 Truck in Victoria

Virginia State Truck Route 40 in Victoria, Virginia is Tidewater Avenue from Court Street to West 6th Street, and Railroad Avenue from Tidewater Avenue and West 6th Street to Main Street. Most of the route is concurrent with Virginia State Route 49 Truck

Stony Creek Business Route

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State Route 40 Business
LocationStony Creek
 
View west along SR 40 Bus. at US 301 in Stony Creek

State Route 40 Business is a former segment of SR 40 that was converted into a business route that runs through "downtown" Stony Creek. It runs along Lee Avenue from a realigned section of SR 40 west of the town, crosses the CSX North End Subdivision and then turns south in a multiplex with US 301 (Blue Star Memorial Highway), where it ends at SR 40 west of Exit 31 on Interstate 95. US 301 continues from here south towards Emporia, the Carolinas, Georgia, and northern and western Florida.

The former segment on the other side of I-95 is a .39 mile local dead end street named Redbank Road that is designated Virginia Secondary Route 317.

References

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  1. ^ a b Virginia Department of Transportation, DRAFT Roadway Network Archived 2008-05-18 at the Wayback Machine (GIS data), October 2006
  2. ^ "New Numbers of Va. Highways Effective July 1". The Richmond Times-Dispatch. May 10, 1933. p. 5. Retrieved January 21, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ a b c Google Maps street maps and USGS topographic maps, accessed via ACME Mapper
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KML is from Wikidata
SR 19 Two‑digit State Routes
1923-1933
SR 21 >
SR 47 Two‑digit State Routes
1923-1933
SR 49 >
SR 322 Spurs of SR 32
1923–1928
SR 324 >