Kentucky to study new interstate beltway around Louisville

[sprjus4]

I don't get it either.  They don't have the money to do Ohio River bridges without tolls but they have the money for this? 

The bypass would likely be constructed as a toll road.

[tidecat]

I know this is kind of off topic.

Are people still trying to take the riverfront back and move I-64 to I-265?

SM-G950U

The formal "8664" effort is long dead, but the idea still gets tossed around in public discourse from time to time.

[bandit957]

This bypass isn't needed.

But I think it would be keen to have an I-771.

[hbelkins]

I'm not sure exactly what the goal of this bypass would be. If it's to move traffic around Louisville, the question of where that traffic is going would be relevant. If there's a need to bypass Louisville on the way to Cincinnati, then the BG Parkway, US 127, I-64, and US 62 make a great route to I-75 north. If it's to alleviate local concerns, then solutions such as adding a TWLTL on KY 44 would be a lot cheaper and solve a lot of problems. I have two first cousins who live on 44 just west of the Floyds Fork bridge, and the whole corridor between Shepherdsville and Mt. Washington has built up since the 1970s. Just adding a center turn lane would take a lot of expensive right of way; buying out hundreds of residences to build a full freeway would be prohibitively expensive.

[The Ghostbuster]

Does Louisville really need a third "beltway"? If the area was a rapidly growing one, and existing Interstates 264 and 265 were tremendously overburdened, I'd say go for it. However, I suspect that is not the case.

[sprjus4]

Does Louisville really need a third "beltway"? If the area was a rapidly growing one, and existing Interstates 264 and 265 were tremendously overburdened, I'd say go for it. However, I suspect that is not the case.

@Houston

[Beltway]

Does Louisville really need a third "beltway"? If the area was a rapidly growing one, and existing Interstates 264 and 265 were tremendously overburdened, I'd say go for it. However, I suspect that is not the case.

@Houston

7.1 million metro population vs. 1.2 million.

[thefro]

Seems as dumb to me as the "Indiana Commerce Corridor" proposal in Indiana (and probably dumber since Louisville has two beltways that aren't overloaded whatsoever outside of the peak of rush hour).

[sprjus4]

7.1 million metro population vs. 1.2 million.

Exactly my point. There's the need for a 3rd outer beltway in Houston, with a talked about 4th one also on the books, there's not in Louisville.

The only project that needs to happen is an extension of the Bluegrass Pkwy to I-64 / I-75 which would provide a bypass for I-65 to I-71 thru traffic via the Parkway and I-75 only adding an additional 20 miles. This will never happen though thanks to NIMBY in the Lexington area.

[rte66man]

7.1 million metro population vs. 1.2 million.

Exactly my point. There's the need for a 3rd outer beltway in Houston....

I-610, Beltway8/SHT, and Grand Parkway are already completed or in process. Are you saying there should be a 4th or are you not counting 610?

[hotdogPi]

7.1 million metro population vs. 1.2 million.

Exactly my point. There's the need for a 3rd outer beltway in Houston....

I-610, Beltway8/SHT, and Grand Parkway are already completed or in process. Are you saying there should be a 4th or are you not counting 610?

He's saying that the existing third beltway is justified.

[sprjus4]

I-610, Beltway8/SHT, and Grand Parkway are already completed or in process. Are you saying there should be a 4th or are you not counting 610?

I'm counting I-610 and Beltway 8 as the existing beltways, and that a third one - Grand Parkway, currently under construction - is justified. If anything, you could say there's 4 beltways if you count the Downtown Loop consisting of I-10, I-45, and I-69.

[GoDeacs]

Does anyone have any idea how long it will likely be before construction on this could start?  Even though additional studies have to be done it seems they are usually just formalities as I believe some big contractors are pushing to make sure this happens with the assistance of those they support in government.  I live approximately 2000 ft from the most likely route and it will be devastating to see the environmental destruction of these rural areas surrounding Louisville for little reason.

[SkyPesos]

Does anyone have any idea how long it will likely be before construction on this could start?  Even though additional studies have to be done it seems they are usually just formalities as I believe some big contractors are pushing to make sure this happens with the assistance of those they support in government.  I live approximately 2000 ft from the most likely route and it will be devastating to see the environmental destruction of these rural areas surrounding Louisville for little reason.

I doubt Louisville would get a third beltway. The second (I-265) is 4 lanes in most areas, which may be saying that it's not heavily used.

[Roadgeekteen]

Is Lousiville big enough for a third beltway?

[SkyPesos]

Is Lousiville big enough for a third beltway?

With a metro population of 1.3mil, I'm going with a hard no. There's tons of metro areas with double that population that doesn't even have a second beltway.

[I-55]

Does anyone have any idea how long it will likely be before construction on this could start?  Even though additional studies have to be done it seems they are usually just formalities as I believe some big contractors are pushing to make sure this happens with the assistance of those they support in government.  I live approximately 2000 ft from the most likely route and it will be devastating to see the environmental destruction of these rural areas surrounding Louisville for little reason.

I doubt Louisville would get a third beltway. The second (I-265) is 4 lanes in most areas, which may be saying that it's not heavily used.

And if the need for more beltway arises they can easily widen 265

[webny99]

Is Lousiville big enough for a third beltway?

With a metro population of 1.3mil, I'm going with a hard no. There's tons of metro areas with double that population that doesn't even have a second beltway.

I agree. Definitely not.

It would make a lot more sense to finish the southwestern quadrant of the beltway they already have and provide another Ohio River crossing. It's crazy that there are no Ohio River crossings between I-64 and Brandenburg.

[NWI_Irish96]

Is Lousiville big enough for a third beltway?

With a metro population of 1.3mil, I'm going with a hard no. There's tons of metro areas with double that population that doesn't even have a second beltway.

I agree. Definitely not.

It would make a lot more sense to finish the southwestern quadrant of the beltway they already have and provide another Ohio River crossing. It's crazy that there are no Ohio River crossings between I-64 and Brandenburg.

The terrain southwest of the I-64 crossing does not lend itself to another crossing, and with the sparse population of that area on the IN side, there isn't huge demand either. Upgrades to Cane Run/Greenbelt would be less expensive and just as effective.

Having lived in both the Louisville area and now Northwest Indiana, I can say that the Illiana is a much more necessary highway than another Louisville beltway. I get that it's different states proposing them, but that's the comparison.

[webny99]

It would make a lot more sense to finish the southwestern quadrant of the beltway they already have and provide another Ohio River crossing. It's crazy that there are no Ohio River crossings between I-64 and Brandenburg.

The terrain southwest of the I-64 crossing does not lend itself to another crossing, and with the sparse population of that area on the IN side, there isn't huge demand either. Upgrades to Cane Run/Greenbelt would be less expensive and just as effective.

I think there would be plenty of demand if there was another river crossing.

[GoDeacs]

Why would KY have spent so much time and money on creating several rounds of detailed proposals if it will likely not be built?  It seems someone at some level must be pushing it?  There are so many highways such as KY44 in the region that need to be expanded yet this project appears to be being pushed to the front of the line.

[SkyPesos]

Why would KY have spent so much time and money on creating several rounds of detailed proposals if it will likely not be built?

That happens with tons of road projects around the nation. One regional example is I-73 in Ohio and Michigan. Both states dropped out that idea after studying it extensively in the 90s.

[Rothman]

Why would KY have spent so much time and money on creating several rounds of detailed proposals if it will likely not be built?

That happens with tons of road projects around the nation. One regional example is I-73 in Ohio and Michigan. Both states dropped out that idea after studying it extensively in the 90s.

See also the millions spent by NY on the Rooftop and Long Island Sound crossing...

[NWI_Irish96]

It would make a lot more sense to finish the southwestern quadrant of the beltway they already have and provide another Ohio River crossing. It's crazy that there are no Ohio River crossings between I-64 and Brandenburg.

The terrain southwest of the I-64 crossing does not lend itself to another crossing, and with the sparse population of that area on the IN side, there isn't huge demand either. Upgrades to Cane Run/Greenbelt would be less expensive and just as effective.

I think there would be plenty of demand if there was another river crossing.

Where does the crossing go and then where does the road go once it crosses? A crossing at the end of the Snyder freeway dumps you out on IN 111 south of IN 211, which is a very desolate area. If you try to go inland from the river at all you hit some very steep terrain. There's really no use for a crossing there. There's no crossing between New Albany and Mauckport because there's nothing there to justify having one.

[webny99]

The terrain southwest of the I-64 crossing does not lend itself to another crossing, and with the sparse population of that area on the IN side, there isn't huge demand either. Upgrades to Cane Run/Greenbelt would be less expensive and just as effective.

I think there would be plenty of demand if there was another river crossing.

Where does the crossing go and then where does the road go once it crosses? A crossing at the end of the Snyder freeway dumps you out on IN 111 south of IN 211, which is a very desolate area. If you try to go inland from the river at all you hit some very steep terrain. There's really no use for a crossing there. There's no crossing between New Albany and Mauckport because there's nothing there to justify having one.

The end of the Snyder freeway seems like the logical place for a crossing if it was going to eventually be part of a complete I-265. It would probably have to be a CSVT-style crossing where the roadway remains elevated for ~1000 ft on the Indiana side.

It may seem like there's not much demand because it's all getting pushed to Louisville, but I imagine I-64 and the western side of I-264 are no picnic during peak times. If there was another crossing with a connection to I-64, it would get plenty of use by traffic connecting between I-64 WB and I-65 SB and vice versa. That would also reduce the burden on the I-64 crossing. I'm not saying this is a high priority, but it is certainly a much higher priority than a third beltway.