transportation

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.

Gov. Andy Beshear and other state leaders on Tuesday announced $8.5 million in transportation funding to replace about 170 buses and support other efforts to expand reliable and sustainable transportation in Kentucky.

The funding will go toward the purchase of cleaner emission transit buses in areas of Kentucky challenged with meeting federal air quality standards.

A new kind of Kentucky license plate has begun appearing on motor vehicles in the Commonwealth.

The most significant difference is in their manufacture – digitally printed on flat aluminum instead of traditional, embossed metal with raised letters and numbers.

The larger, unseen difference will be in savings to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) on storage space, bulk manufacturing and unused inventory. With digital technology, standard and specialty license plates can be produced as needed rather than having to be mass-produced.

Motorists using US 23 through Russell can expect early-morning traffic stoppages on Saturday, Aug. 29, for utility work at the KY 244 viaduct replacement project in Greenup County.

This Saturday morning, from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m., flaggers will temporarily stop all traffic on US 23 and on the Ironton-Russell Bridge for up to 15 minutes at a time so contractors can safely relocate underground utility lines between the bridge and Kenwood Drive.

Motorists should expect significant delays, and plan travel accordingly. Detouring to alternate routes is suggested.

Work to improve two more AA Highway bridges in Lewis County is now under way as part of a $1.4 million Transportation Cabinet seven-bridge improvement project in northeast Kentucky.

With work complete on the AA Highway (KY 9) bridge over Salt Lick Creek at Vanceburg, crews have moved to the KY 9 (AA) bridge over Ben Willen Branch at milepoint 17.3 five miles north of Vanceburg, and to the KY 9 (Grayson spur) bridge over Kinniconnick Creek at milepoint 4.3.

Both bridges will be reduced to one lane with traffic controlled by temporary signals for about the next 30 days.

The Kentucky Department of Highways will close part of KY 503 in Greenup County the week of August 10 to replace a damaged bridge.

The steel beams and concrete foundation of a culvert-style bridge that spans Uhlens Run just south of Yates Road (milepoint 7.89) have deteriorated and must be replaced.

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.

Improvements to several AA Highway bridges in Lewis County are coming soon under a $1.4 million Transportation Cabinet seven-bridge improvement project in northeast Kentucky.

Weather permitting, contractors plan to start resurfacing work Wednesday, July 22, at the AA Highway (KY 9) bridge over Salt Lick Creek just north of Vanceburg at milepoint 13.6. The bridge will be reduced to one lane with traffic controlled by temporary signals for 30 days.

The next phase of planning for the newest segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion is set to begin this month.

In June, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) awarded the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) a $55 Million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant to partially fund construction on the Wolfe County segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion. Preparation for this segment will move forward as KYTC begins delivering letters to impacted property owners along the Parkway, detailing the purchasing needs for land surrounding the project site.

Kentucky’s rich and varied musical heritage is highlighted and celebrated in the 2020-2021 Official Highway Map of the Bluegrass State.

“Music is part of life in Kentucky and crosses many genres,” Gov. Andy Beshear said. “By the same token, our official highway map is much more than a display of route lines and numbers. It symbolizes connection to the things and places that matter most to us.”

Part of Crooked Creek Road (KY 1244) in Nicholas County will be closed this month to repair an embankment slip.

Beginning Monday morning, July 27, state highway crews will close KY 1244 at milepoint 3.4, about two tenths of a mile west of Barterville. The road will remain closed there, day and night, for two weeks as crews excavate the slope and place rock along the roadside to rebuild the embankment.

As part of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s yearly bridge inspection program, the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge (US 62) in downtown Maysville will be closed next Tuesday for several hours.

Weather permitting, engineers will close the Ohio River bridge Tuesday, July 21, at 9 a.m. to inspect the steel support towers, main suspension cable, and other structural components. The bridge should reopen by 3 p.m. or when inspections are complete.

Work continues this week on a $1.4 million Transportation Cabinet seven-bridge improvement project in northeast Kentucky as contractors begin resurfacing today on a Flemingsburg Bypass (KY 32) bridge in Fleming County.

The KY 32 bridge, which spans Fleming Creek about a mile east of KY 11-Mt. Sterling Avenue (towards Morehead) at Flemingsburg, will be one lane controlled by temporary traffic signals for about the next 30 days.

With work complete on new median cable barrier along 10 miles of I-64 in Boyd County, contractors have moved cable installation to eight miles of Rowan County interstate.

Work zone signs and barrels are in place now on I-64 from mile marker 129 near the Bath County line to mile marker 137 at the Morehead exit, and crews are installing new median cable barrier there.

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).

The Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge (US 62) in downtown Maysville will reopen today with a 15-ton restricted weight limit.

Once crews check that traffic signals are operating normally and remove barricades, use of the bridge may resume. Motorists should heed all warning signs and use caution during the traffic switch.

All traffic using the bridge will be restricted to a 15-ton weight limit. Traffic over the posted limit may detour using US 68 and the nearby William Harsha Bridge.

Engineers plan to reopen the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge in downtown Maysville in early May after additional rust-proofing and final inspections.

The 1930s-era bridge, which carries US 62 across the Ohio River between Maysville and Aberdeen, Ohio, closed late last year when inspectors found extensive corrosion damage to several suspender cables – the vertical cables extending from the main suspension cable that support the bridge’s driving surface.

New cable barrier will come to 18 miles of I-64 in Boyd and Rowan counties this year, with work beginning next week between Ashland’s interstate exits.

Cable barrier, which uses a high-tension fence of continuous steel cables to help prevent vehicles from crossing the median into opposing traffic, is a safety device often used on interstates and divided highways to reduce the severity of crashes.

As part of two $3 million Kentucky Transportation Cabinet projects, cables will be installed along the I-64 median in two areas:

Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray has extended until June 1, 2020 an existing emergency order that temporarily lifts regulatory restrictions on motor carriers delivering goods and services critical to COVID-19 pandemic relief.

The order is in keeping with Gov. Andy Beshear’s declaration of an emergency as part of a sweeping effort to protect Kentuckians and combat the spread of the novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19. Secretary Gray’s original order, issued on March 13, would have expired at midnight Sunday.

In keeping with Gov. Andy Beshear’s declaration of emergency and safety focus for Kentuckians, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Secretary Jim Gray today signed an emergency order temporarily suspending certain regulatory restrictions on motor carriers engaged in delivering goods and services to assist with COVID-19 relief efforts.

The order will expedite the delivery of bottled water, food, water, medicine, fuel and other critical supplies. It also applies to vehicles engaged in response efforts in affected areas.

Contractors plan to start repairs March 16 on the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge (US 62) at Maysville to fix damaged cabling so the bridge can be reopened to traffic this spring.

The 1930s-era downtown bridge, which carries US 62 across the Ohio River between Maysville and Aberdeen, Ohio, was restricted to a 3-ton weight limit in July when inspectors found corrosion damage to several suspender cables – the vertical cables extending from the main suspension cable that support the bridge’s driving surface.

Highway fatalities in Kentucky increased last year according to preliminary numbers from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s (KYTC) Office of Highway Safety (KOHS). Initial data indicates there were 734 fatalities in 2019, compared to 724 in 2018.

Gov. Andy Beshear and Transportation Secretary Jim Gray said Wednesday at the Kentucky Transportation headquarters they are focused on helping Kentuckians who need a REAL ID obtain one by the Oct. 1 deadline.

Despite Kentucky not currently meeting the federal REAL ID standards, the Beshear administration is committed to implementing the initiative. On Wednesday, Gov. Beshear and Secretary Gray announced a new REAL ID project manager and two more office locations and Secretary Gray demonstrated how to apply for a REAL ID.

Public meetings start next week in the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s study of highway needs in the Ashland-Boyd-Greenup urban area of northeast Kentucky.

The first meeting will be Tuesday, Jan. 21, 5-7 p.m. at the Flatwoods Senior Center. A second will follow Tuesday, Jan. 28, 5-7 p.m. at Ashland City Hall.

For more than 70 years, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) has paved the way for Kentucky’s youth to pursue a rewarding engineering career by offering two scholarship programs to help pay for tuition while providing employment.

KYTC will award up to 30 new scholarships for the 2020-2021 school year to prospective and current college students pursuing civil engineering and engineering technology degrees. Interested students must apply by the Feb. 1, 2020 deadline for scholarship consideration.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's $500,000 project to replace the aging KY 211 bridge over Cow Creek near Salt Lick will begin next week in Bath County.

Work starts Monday, Jan. 6, and will require KY 211 to close at the construction site (milepoint 8.2) for up to 60 days as contractors demolish the old bridge and build a new one in its place. A detour will be marked using US 60 and KY 1269 through Peasticks.

Administrative and pricing changes are ahead for the special license plate program to comply with legislative changes made during the spring General Assembly.

At the end of December, the Division of Motor Vehicle Licensing will begin implementing House Bill 341’s modifications to two statutes governing special license plates – the state’s optional license plates manufactured for 44 approved non-profit organizations.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) Secretary Jim Gray invites Kentucky students to submit original artwork for the agency’s annual Adopt-a-Highway art contest following the theme, Adopt-a-Highway: Keeping Kentucky Beautiful.

The artwork promotes a litter-free message to residents and winners can prizes.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is making major progress to introduce a modernized license plate manufacturing process in late 2020 after entering into a recent agreement with Intellectual Technologies Inc.

Unlike current license plates embossed with raised letters and numbers, the new plates will be flat and printed digitally, reducing the production costs of bulk manufacturing, storage space, and unused inventory. The background graphics and pricing for standard and special license plates will remain the same.

After three years of construction, the new four-lane segment of the Mountain Parkway Expansion running through Salyersville’s Restaurant Row is now fully open to traffic. Restaurant Row marks the second section of the Parkway to be completed under the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC)’s Mountain Parkway Expansion.