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[ShawnP]

The slow but steady process to six lane I-65 through Kentucky continues. After this widening there will be 43 or so miles left to do. I did notice the Bowling Green Engineer wasn't playing nice with KYTC for paving further north instead of widening. I really like how Kentucky does it 6 laning by total rebuilds and making the highway nice for many years instead of just adding a lane and leaving other problems alone.

http://bgdailynews.com/articles/2010/11/05/news/news4.txt

[ShawnP]

Did some further checking and it appears Kentucky has already identfied funding for mile marker 48 to 53 for the next year or so. That would leave 38 miles to go for the widening project.

[JREwing78]

That's some aggressive widening there. I can think of many stretches of 4-lane freeway that have far more traffic than these stretches of I-65 reportedly do.

[wriddle082]

Seems like these days, the attitude that GA has had regarding widening I-75 (basically "Get 'er done!"), it seems KY has a similar attitude towards widening I-75, I-65, and soon I-64 b/w Louisville and Lexington.

I also seem to recall that OH is taking a similar approach to I-75 north of Dayton, and possibly all of I-71?

The only drawback to all of KY's widening is that it will all end at the TN state line for the foreseeable future, since I do not recall even seeing funding for studies for widening I-65 south into Nashville or I-75 south into Knoxville.

[mightyace]

^^^

Yeah, we're lucky to get the widening from TN 96 (Exit 65) to TN 840 (Exit 59)!

[ShawnP]

You mean states that get stuff done instead of doing pretty study after study about upgrading their main Interstate lifelanes. Yes that means you MISSOURI and your endless studies about I-70. Yes it takes money and time but it can be done on a 15-20 year plan as Kentucky is doing with I-65 and I-75. I see Kentucky done with I-65 six laning by 2020 or so.

[hbelkins]

Seems like these days, the attitude that GA has had regarding widening I-75 (basically "Get 'er done!"), it seems KY has a similar attitude towards widening I-75, I-65, and soon I-64 b/w Louisville and Lexington.

I also seem to recall that OH is taking a similar approach to I-75 north of Dayton, and possibly all of I-71?

The only drawback to all of KY's widening is that it will all end at the TN state line for the foreseeable future, since I do not recall even seeing funding for studies for widening I-65 south into Nashville or I-75 south into Knoxville.

Kentucky's doing much of its interstate widening through the use of GARVEE Bonds. Of course this will probably severely curtail the number of federally funded projects Kentucky can do once all the widening is completed.

I can only imagine how much it would cost to widen I-75 across Jellico Mountain. Even putting a truck lane on the uphill grades would be insanely expensive.

[wriddle082]

I can only imagine how much it would cost to widen I-75 across Jellico Mountain. Even putting a truck lane on the uphill grades would be insanely expensive.

They would have no choice but to blast into the mountain to build the two additional lanes (really should be three so there would be four uphill southbound and three downhill northbound) since it's a pretty steep dropoff from the right edge of the southbound lanes.  Then there is the geology issue (rock layers parallel to slope instead of perpendicular).

They really should have built I-75 in the valley that TN 297 lies in, or closer to US 25W.

[froggie]

Kentucky's doing much of its interstate widening through the use of GARVEE Bonds. Of course this will probably severely curtail the number of federally funded projects Kentucky can do once all the widening is completed.

Indeed.  To do so on such a large scale, Kentucky is basically putting itself into a position where a large percentage (if not most) of its future Federal highway dollars will be going back to pay off the GARVEE Bonds.  It's not much different than other heavy use of bonding.  If anyone needs an object lesson in what heavy bonding use will do to your transportation budget, just look at PennDOT from around 25-30 years ago or NJDOT today.

[codyg1985]

uld have built I-75 in the valley that TN 297 lies in, or closer to US 25W.

That seems like it would have been smarter. I wonder what the reasoning was for going onto Jellico Mountain in the first place?

[ShawnP]

Kentucky used 440 million of GARVEE bonds in 06-07 to finance I-75, I-65 and I-64 widening in 06-08. New widening projects I think aren't using GARVEE bonds.

http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/publications/freightfinancing/sect3.htm

[hbelkins]

Kentucky used 440 million of GARVEE bonds in 06-07 to finance I-75, I-65 and I-64 widening in 06-08. New widening projects I think aren't using GARVEE bonds.

http://www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/freight/publications/freightfinancing/sect3.htm

The document formerly known as the six-year plan used to list the GARVEE projects. Not sure if the current document lists any or not. I haven't looked at it either in print or online for quite some time.

[ShawnP]

Pages 10-12 provide FY11-12 GARVEE paybacks. Also HB you said Mountain Parkway is being widened. What Mile Marker is it? Sorry forgot where you said. Go CATS.

http://transportation.ky.gov/progmgmt/2010hwyplan/default.html

[hbelkins]

Pages 10-12 provide FY11-12 GARVEE paybacks. Also HB you said Mountain Parkway is being widened. What Mile Marker is it? Sorry forgot where you said. Go CATS.

http://transportation.ky.gov/progmgmt/2010hwyplan/default.html

MM 43-46 is currently under construction as a design-build.

The stretch from approximately MM 56 to MM 75 is under study. A public meeting was held on the project in summer 2009.

[ShawnP]

Not from the mountains here but what does the public have to say about it?

[hbelkins]

Not from the mountains here but what does the public have to say about it?

They're all for it. There is a great clamor in Pike, Johnson and Floyd (and to a lesser extent, Martin and Magoffin) for the Mountain Parkway to be four-laned.

[ShawnP]

Would there be support to retoll to help with the widening? Given the money hogs that the Bridges Project, Brent Spence and I-69 bridge will be for Kentucky not much else to go around for needed projects like said widening.

[ShawnP]

So what will the feddies and Kentucky cook up? Will have to be inovative as the Louisville Bridges Project is eating up most of the state road budget over the next few years.

http://bgdailynews.com/articles/2011/02/06/news/news3.txt

[hbelkins]

Would there be support to retoll to help with the widening?

Not only no, but hell no.

[froggie]

Guess you're waiting your turn for widening money, then...

[ShawnP]

It's Eastern Kentucky not like there is much economic devlopment after all.

[hbelkins]

When the tolls came off the Mountain Parkway in the mid 1980s, the idea was floated to keep tolls on the route to pay for maintenance. The negative response from eastern Kentucky was overwhelming. The majority of the population was adamant that the promise had been made that the tolls would be removed once the bonds were paid off and the politicians had darn well better keep that promise.

The people there see examples such as that over the last 15 years the entire length of US 68/KY 80 from Bowling Green west to I-24 has been widened from two to four lanes and wonder why they can't get their roads improved too.

[froggie]

Do these people understand that 68/80 is also A) flatter, B) at-grade, and as a result of both is C) much less expensive?

Do they also understand and accept that, by taking tolls off the Mountain Pkwy, KYTC has been on the hook for maintenance and upkeep of a freeway facility?  If not, they really don't have a leg to stand on.

Course, if KYTC didn't have a gazillion 3- and 4-digit routes to maintain, they'd probably have a little more money available for things like improving the Mountain Pkwy or widening I-65...

[hbelkins]

Course, if KYTC didn't have a gazillion 3- and 4-digit routes to maintain, they'd probably have a little more money available for things like improving the Mountain Pkwy or widening I-65...

Unfortunately, in a relatively poor rural state, the counties don't have a lot of money to maintain those roads.

[froggie]

That's a BS answer, IMO.  Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas are just as poor and rural, and yet they manage to do it.  Alabama manages to do it quite well, for that matter...