U.S. Route 23 Business (
US 23 Bus.) is a business route of
US 23 between
Big Stone Gap and
Norton, Virginia. US 23 Bus. begins in Big Stone Gap at an interchange along mainline US 23 with
US 58 Alt. and State Route 844 (SR 844), the former of which joins US 23 in an overlap until it reaches Norton northbound US 23 Bus. and westbound US 58 Alt. wind around Gilley Avenue East until it reaches East 5th Street South, then turns north. At Wood Avenue East (
SR 610), US 58 Alt. turns west, ending the concurrency, and the name changes to East 5th Street North. The route crosses a bridge over the Powell River then after passing a local car dealership across from East 5th Avenue becomes Roaring Branch Road. Most of this mountainous road winds around the Powell River,
Norfolk Southern Railway's
Appalachia District, and an abandoned
Louisville and Nashville Railroad line currently in the process of being converted into a rail trail. The route turns more towards the east as it enters
Appalachia, where it is renamed West Main Street, and serves as the eastern terminus for
SR 68. The road name is changed to East Main Street after the southern terminus of
SR 78 a bridge over Norfolk Southern Railway's
Clinch Valley Extension, and then follows the rest of the line east. Leaving town, the road is named Kent Junction Road, and at
SR 603 where it passes a bridge over the junction the road was named for which also contains the
Paradise Branch. The street name still remains after passing this junction, and, along the way, it passes the Central Drive-In Theatre just before passing through
Blackwood. Descending from the mountains, the area becomes slightly more developed as it passes by the NRHP-listed
Country Cabin community center, and through a forgotten unincorporated community named Josephine. East of
SR 621, the route officially enters
Norton, and the street is named Park Avenue Northwest. Within downtown Norton, the road encounters
US 58 Alt. Bus. at 11th Street Southwest and is joined by that route in an overlap. Continuing to run straight east through the city, it encounters the western terminus of
SR 74 at Coeburn Avenue Southwest, which runs southeast of the routes. East of SR 74, the routes climb an embankment and becomes a divided highway, though the US 23 Bus./US 58 Alt. Bus. overlap is about to come to an end. Just before the interchange with mainline US 23, US 58 Alt. Bus. continues east straight ahead along unmarked
SR 283 (Norton Coeburn Road) while US 23 and Park Avenue Northeast make a sharp turn to the north. From this point on, the route is a two-lane highway with a continuous center left-turn lane, winding around the west side of the Guest River, and Norfolk Southern Railway's
Glamorgan Branch. Snaking closer to the railroad and the river, it leaves the Norton city limits at the intersection with
SR 620 and the Glamorgan Branch at the same time, just before crossing a bridge over the Guest River where the street is named Esserville Road. US 23 Bus. ends at the intersection of US 23 across from
SR 757 (Wise–Norton Road). ==Wise business loop==