Mountain Parkway

The eastbound lanes of the Mountain Parkway between exits 33 and 40 in Powell and Wolfe counties have reopened. Repairs to the sinkhole which developed near the Tunnel Ridge Road overpass at the county line have progressed to the point where one direction of travel has been restored, one day ahead of schedule.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) has awarded a contract for emergency repairs to the Mountain Parkway in Powell County near the Wolfe County line.

Walker Construction & Materials LLC was the successful bidder. The cost of $1,091,845.38 is about half the estimated cost of repairs, which was nearly $2 million.

The westbound lanes of this vital transportation artery for eastern Kentucky have been closed since late July, when a sinkhole developed beneath the surface of the road.

The westbound lanes of the Mountain Parkway have been closed indefinitely at milepost 35.8 in Powell County, just west of the Wolfe County line, due to the collapse of the roadbed beneath the pavement. This location is near the Tunnel Ridge Road underpass at the top of Slade Hill.

Westbound traffic is being detoured at Exit 40 in Wolfe County onto northbound KY 15. Drivers can re-enter the Mountain Parkway at Exit 33 at Slade. Signs are in place to inform drivers of the closure. The westbound lanes of the parkway are blocked at Exit 40 at Pine Ridge in Wolfe County.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced Tuesday that his administration successfully secured for a $55,150,000 Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to fund the Mountain Parkway Expansion through Wolfe County.

The grant was awarded to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC).

Drivers using the Mountain Parkway and KY 1010 at Exit 53 in Wolfe County should prepare for a major traffic pattern change, as work continues on a pavement and bridge rehabilitation project between Stillwater and Helechawa (exits 46 and 57).

Width restrictions for a bridge on the Mountain Parkway in eastern Wolfe County will take effect Monday, June 17, as a major pavement rehabilitation and bridge repair project gets underway on the two-lane portion of the highway east of Campton.

Crews working on the Mountain Parkway Expansion in Magoffin County this week will begin replacing a bridge across Burning Fork.  The project represents the first road construction work that will take place on Restaurant Row in Salyersville.

Crews currently are preparing to relocate underground utilities near the current Burning Fork bridge, located just west of the U.S. 460 intersection. Soon, work will begin to build a new bridge on the south side of the parkway that will carry the expanded, four-lane parkway over Burning Fork.

A new bridge and three new ramps for the Mountain Parkway opened Wednesday as construction crews move forward with projects to create a safer and better transportation corridor in Eastern Kentucky.

Crews working in the Magoffin County Central Segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion – just west of Salyersville – recently completed a new bridge carrying the parkway across KY 30 and constructed new lanes around that interchange (Exit 72).

Motorists using KY 773 between Grayson and Hitchins in Carter County should expect traffic impacts during bridge repairs over the next two weeks.

Beginning Wednesday, Oct. 12, Kentucky Department of Highways crews will repair concrete and stone supports under the easternmost KY 773 bridge over the Little Sandy River – the one closest to KY 1 at Hitchins. Weather permitting, work should be complete by Friday, Oct. 21.

Dozens of people attended a public meeting Tuesday, September 27th to learn more about construction that is starting soon on the Restaurant Row Segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion.

The Restaurant Row Segment stretches nearly 2½ miles through Salyersville. It starts at the end of the current Mountain Parkway – just east of the KY 7 interchange (Exit 75) – and runs to just east of the KY 114/US 460 junction.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will hold a meeting later this month to share information about construction activities starting in Salyersville as part of the Mountain Parkway Expansion.

The meeting will serve as a preview of the three-year construction project to improve safety and mobility along Salyersville’s Restaurant Row.  The project runs along a nearly 2 ½ mile corridor – from just east of the end of the current Mountain Parkway to just east of the KY 114/US 460 junction (Rock House Road).

The eastbound exit ramp from the Mountain Parkway to KY 30 will be closed through 9 a.m. Monday, September 12.

The closure will allow crews to remove the existing ramp and build a new one. Signs and message boards will alert travelers of the closure.

Eastbound vehicles needing to access KY 30 may use the KY 7 interchange (Exit 75), re-enter the Mountain Parkway heading west and then exit onto KY 30.

The first extension of the Mountain Parkway in more than a half century will begin soon as contractors start to widen the roadway through Salyersville’s Restaurant Row.

The 2.4-mile project will improve safety and ease mobility through the busiest and most visible stretch of roadway along the Mountain Parkway corridor.

Contractors for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet are beginning to clear the path for the first extension of the Mountain Parkway in a half-century.

Crews working in Salyersville are completing pre-construction work needed to allow the project to begin this summer on Salyersville’s Restaurant Row.

Among the final pre-construction activities will be removal of about a half dozen structures that are in the planned path for parkway through Salyersville. The structures are located on property acquired by KYTC for the Mountain Parkway Expansion.

(Editor's note: The following report was provided by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet)

The Mountain Parkway Expansion is a 46-mile transportation improvement project that will create a wider, safer connection between Eastern Kentucky and the rest of the Commonwealth.

The project will widen 30 miles of the existing parkway from two lanes to four lanes, and will extend the parkway another 16 miles between Salyersville and Prestonsburg.

This report includes information on work underway on the Mountain Parkway Expansion. Inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances could affect planned activities.

Magoffin County

Despite the snowfall in Eastern Kentucky, work on the Mountain Parkway Expansion continues this week after only a temporary halt.

Construction and clearing activities are continuing along a nearly 6-mile stretch of the Mountain Parkway to the west of Salyersville.

Last year marked the start of a transformational transportation project for residents and businesses in Eastern Kentucky, with implications for the entire state and beyond.

In 2015, construction began on the Mountain Parkway Expansion, a project that aims to widen the 30-mile stretch of the parkway from Campton to Salyersville and extend the roadway by another 16 miles, to Prestonsburg. The road is expected to improve safety, ease travel and open Kentucky’s Appalachian region to new economic development opportunities.

More than 300 people attended a public meeting on November 19 to hear updated details on two options under consideration for extending the Mountain Parkway between Salyersville and Prestonsburg.

No decision has been made on whether to widen the parkway along the existing corridor (KY 114) or build a new road along a cross-country corridor to the north of KY 114. However, further studies over the last few months allowed the project team to refine plans and provide more details about the two routes.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will hold a meeting next week to share what it has learned after several months of evaluating options for extending the Mountain Parkway between Salyersville and Prestonsburg.

Officials have refined two alternatives to create a four-lane road between Salyersville and Prestonsburg, and they will present additional details to the public during a Nov. 19 meeting at Prestonsburg Elementary School, 140 South Clark Road. The meeting will run from 4:30 to 7 p.m.

About one-fifth of the widening and improvements of the Mountain Parkway between Campton and Salyersville will be under construction this summer, marking significant progress for the Mountain Parkway Expansion.

A third construction project starting soon just west of Salyersville will bring a total of six miles of the current Mountain Parkway to the construction phase.

Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo announced today (June 2) that he is calling for a new extension of the Mountain Parkway into West Virginia, to “unlock the potential of our regions vibrant workforce.”

In a letter to each member of the Kentucky and West Virginia Congressional delegations, and both states’ governors, Speaker Stumbo championed the major new expansion.

“Eastern Kentucky and West Virginia share a vibrant workforce that is united in providing the finest quality labor anywhere,” said Stumbo.

Based on positive feedback from a recent public meeting, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will carry forward its preliminary evaluation of a cross-country corridor for extending the Mountain Parkway from Salyersville to Prestonsburg.

More details will help KYTC better compare its two options for creating a four-lane, 14-mile extension of the Mountain Parkway: Widen along the existing corridor (KY 114) or build a new road along a cross-country corridor north of KY 114.

The public is invited to learn more about plans to extend the Mountain Parkway in Eastern Kentucky.

Engineers with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and its consultants will discuss alternatives to develop a four-lane, high-speed route along the KY 114 corridor between Salyersville and Prestonsburg.

Crews are starting work in a second section of the Mountain Parkway Expansion. The latest project will widen 1.1 miles of the parkway and make improvements to the KY 7/Salyersville interchange.

The interchange improvements include reconfiguring the westbound exit ramp to KY 7 from the Mountain Parkway and re-aligning the three other ramps at the interchange.

After a few days off following the severe winter weather that hit Eastern Kentucky late last month, crews returned to work last week along the Mountain Parkway, just west of Salyersville.

Clearing, drilling and blasting activities continue as construction crews expand a 1.4-mile corridor near mile point 70 to add an interchange at Gifford Road and widen the parkway to four lanes.

The speed limit in this area has been reduced to 45 mph.

Traffic on the parkway will continue to be stopped during blasts for the safety of workers and travelers, causing short delays.

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear joined local and state officials to ceremonially open the much-anticipated first half of the U.S. 460 realignment project in Pike County – an 8-mile, $283 million project.

Speaking to a full gymnasium at Shelby Valley High School, Gov. Beshear emphasized the importance and need of this project.

More than 50 years after the Mountain Parkway opened, Gov. Steve Beshear and Eastern Kentucky leaders today marked the beginning of the Mountain Parkway Expansion – a 46-mile transformational construction project to improve mobility, safety and economic development in the Appalachian region.

The Mountain Parkway Expansion – a 46-mile transportation improvement project that will create a wider, safer connection between eastern Kentucky and the rest of the Commonwealth – will have a significantly lower price tag when construction begins later this year.

Governor Steve Beshear has unveiled the first of a series of innovative engineering improvements, changes that will reduce the cost of the project by at least $40 million and provide a more direct route for motorists and commercial vehicles.