Kentucky

[ibthebigd]

Best way to improve the connection from I-64 west to Mountain Parkway east, or Mountain Parkway west to I-64 east, would be a major improvement to KY 11 between Clay City and Mt. Sterling.

How much further is US 460 to Ky 213

SM-G996U

[hbelkins]

Actually, there are a lot of people who prefer taking KY 213 and US 460 as opposed to KY 11. I haven't run the mileage on the exact routes, but there's much more improved highway along 213/460. Only about 6-7 miles of that route is not improved, vs. the entire 15-mile KY 11 route.

I guess a lot of it depends on where you're coming from and where you're going.

[Georgia Guardrail]

Are there any current plans for improvements on the Bluegrass Parkway?

This dangerous interchange https://www.google.com/maps/@37.749732,-85.6711895,3a,75y,22.5h,62.39t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1suHjMNOisaMdLjozqCY4hnQ!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fpanoid%3DuHjMNOisaMdLjozqCY4hnQ%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D7.0851994%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu with Nelsonville road comes to mind.  I don't even understand how that passed inspection to begin with!

[plain]

That design is the remnants of a single point toll plaza, where the mainline and all ramps used it. It's pretty much in the same vein as the typical cloverleaf toll plazas KY used.


EDIT:

Image from Historic Aerials, 1983

[wriddle082]

^ Yes it was a 40¢ toll up until 1991 when all tolls were lifted.  I got to throw coins in the baskets at each of the toll plazas right before the tolls were lifted, as I had my permit and license back in 91.  This plaza was the only one on the BG that wasn't located under a bridge, so there was an actual toll plaza structure built here.

Also, flooding is common in this area when heavy rains occur.  I have seen it flooded in all of the grassy sections between the ramps and roadways, but not on KY 52 itself (though I can imagine it has flooded).  The Rolling Fork River is just west of this area.

[Georgia Guardrail]

Ah yes.  I forgot that Bluegrass Parkway was tolled up till the early 1990s.  That would explain the odd design.  A lot of Kentucky interchanges with toll booths had the tight 4 cloverleaf type ramp systems that are now outdated.  You can see remnants of them on the Bluegrass, Cumberland, and Western Parkways.

[hbelkins]

Ah yes.  I forgot that Bluegrass Parkway was tolled up till the early 1990s.  That would explain the odd design.  A lot of Kentucky interchanges with toll booths had the tight 4 cloverleaf type ramp systems that are now outdated.  You can see remnants of them on the Bluegrass, Cumberland, and Western Parkways.

I'm thinking that this will be the very last of the toll booth interchanges ever converted, although it would probably be the easiest to convert. Construction costs probably wouldn't be too terribly high. Just tweak the points where the ramps intersect the parkway, close the interchange for a couple of weeks, and it's done. The reason I say it'll be the last one is because I'm sure the traffic volumes here are not high at all.

The last one on the Purchase is currently being converted as part of the I-69 project.

[GCrites]

Ah yes.  I forgot that Bluegrass Parkway was tolled up till the early 1990s.  That would explain the odd design.  A lot of Kentucky interchanges with toll booths had the tight 4 cloverleaf type ramp systems that are now outdated.  You can see remnants of them on the Bluegrass, Cumberland, and Western Parkways.

Kentucky really stood out on U.S. maps in the '80s with its latticework of toll roads. Like if green was interstates, blue was toll roads and red was U.S. Routes Kentucky glowed blue.

[seicer]

Add to it the Daniel Boone, Mountain, Audubon, Green River parkways, tolls allowed the state to build out its network decades ahead of other states.

[Stephane Dumas]

That design is the remnants of a single point toll plaza, where the mainline and all ramps used it. It's pretty much in the same vein as the typical cloverleaf toll plazas KY used.


EDIT:

Image from Historic Aerials, 1983

There's another interchange of this kind who exist in Quebec where A-10 meet PQ-243. https://goo.gl/maps/KzVBZFQn3pLn2YG3A 

[plain]

That design is the remnants of a single point toll plaza, where the mainline and all ramps used it. It's pretty much in the same vein as the typical cloverleaf toll plazas KY used.


EDIT:

Image from Historic Aerials, 1983

There's another interchange of this kind who exist in Quebec where A-10 meet PQ-243. https://goo.gl/maps/KzVBZFQn3pLn2YG3A

Yes, another former toll plaza location.

CO, KY, OK, and QC were the places that used the toll plaza with the cloverleaf design (with KY & QC having at least one interchange with the particular design shown in the image). Oklahoma actually still have a couple of toll plazas left utilizing the cloverleaf, but they're not going to last too much longer with the OTA's switch to AET.

[seicer]

I wasn't aware this project had progressed that much, but a flyover ramp will be built from US 23 to US 119 south in Jenkins. This will also include four-lane widening on a relocated alignment for US 119: https://transportation.ky.gov/Planning/Planning%20Studies%20and%20Reports/12-199.00%20DNA.pdf

[XamotCGC]

Isn't the KY 55 exit to Bloomfield on the BG still configured for toll roads with the bowtie,mini clover exit?   

[wriddle082]

Isn't the KY 55 exit to Bloomfield on the BG still configured for toll roads with the bowtie,mini clover exit?   

Yes it is.  Low volume exit, so it's probably a low priority to convert to a diamond.  Plus it's not along a future interstate (for now).

[74/171FAN]

(Thunderbolt Radio)  Extended closure of KY 166/Middle Road in Fulton County for bridge replacement delayed to next week

[hbelkins]

I drove the new Minnie-to-Harold connector (KY 680) yesterday. The road connects KY 80 at Eastern with US 23/US 460/KY 80 at Harold. The road lies entirely within Floyd County and its eastern terminus is about a mile north of the Pike County line.

Best I can tell, old KY 680 is still numbered that way between KY 122 and KY 979. I presume that number will be swapped with KY 3680, which is what the uncompleted portion of the road was signed previously.

The primary purpose of the road is to provide a shortcut between Hindman/Hazard and Pikeville. It eliminates the need to go all th way to Allen on KY 80 before turning south of US 23.

[Rothman]

I drove the new Minnie-to-Harold connector (KY 680) yesterday. The road connects KY 80 at Eastern with US 23/US 460/KY 80 at Harold. The road lies entirely within Floyd County and its eastern terminus is about a mile north of the Pike County line.

Best I can tell, old KY 680 is still numbered that way between KY 122 and KY 979. I presume that number will be swapped with KY 3680, which is what the uncompleted portion of the road was signed previously.

The primary purpose of the road is to provide a shortcut between Hindman/Hazard and Pikeville. It eliminates the need to go all th way to Allen on KY 80 before turning south of US 23.

Hope it works out as well as the original stretch from KY 80 to Minnie did.

[seicer]

Gov. Andy Beshear Announces Speed Limit Increase to 65 mph on 2 Sections of U.S. 68/KY 80 near Cadiz and Mayfield
Official order applies to two 4-lane sections totaling 9 miles

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 3, 2023) – Continuing his commitment to the modernization of transportation under his Better Kentucky Plan, today Gov. Andy Beshear announced an increase in the speed limit on two sections of U.S. 68/KY 80 in parts of Trigg and Graves counties.

The highway sections, both of which are four-lane, now bear speed limit signs for 65 mph, up from the previous 55 mph.

"The U.S. 68/Kentucky 80 Corridor is a well-designed, well-constructed highway that can safely accommodate the higher speed limit," Gov. Beshear said. "This corridor already is a tremendous asset as a 4-lane connector between Interstate 24 at Cadiz and Interstate 69 at Mayfield. By updating the out-of-date speed limit, we are reducing congestion and helping Kentuckians get to their destination quicker and safer, while also increasing economic development by enhancing the flow of commerce in this area."

Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray signed the order directing the higher speed limit on 6.5 miles of U.S. 68/KY 80 from the west edge of Cadiz to the Lake Barkley Bridge at Canton and along 2.5 miles of the KY 80 Mayfield South Bypass.

To confirm the roadway could safely accommodate the higher speed limit, Transportation Cabinet engineers analyzed data from similar road segments where the speed limit was raised earlier. 

The speed limit will remain at 55 along 9 miles of the corridor through Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area and near the I-24 Cadiz Exit 65 Interchange east of Cadiz, at the U.S. 641/KY 80 intersection north of Murray, and near the KY 121 Bypass at Mayfield where the intersections have traffic signals.

The speed limit along U.S. 68/KY 80 from Cadiz, through Christian, Todd and Logan counties to the edge of Bowling Green was raised to 65 mph in October 2012, enhancing the corridor across southern Kentucky. A section of KY 80 in Calloway and Graves counties was raised in October 2015. The speed limit has also been increased on 4-lane sections of U.S. 641 and U.S. 45.

"I am pleased with the cooperative effort by public officials and economic development organizations across the region who have worked to make this speed limit increase a reality. This decision by Governor Beshear and the Transportation Cabinet will make travel a little easier for all of us while opening up economic development opportunities for counties along the corridor and beyond," said State Rep. Richard Heath of Mayfield.

"This speed limit change means goods and materials can move into and out of the area more efficiently. Raising the speed limit turns the U.S. 68 /KY 80corridor into an even greater asset in the competitive arena of economic development and job expansion," said Graves County Judge-Executive Jesse Perry.

"We are fortunate to have this high-quality connection between I-69 and I-24 that connects on eastward to Bowling Green. This new speed limit is an advantage on GPS devices and when companies perform fuel consumption and travel time calculations. If you are in Mayfield or Murray, this provides a quicker way to reach Bowling Green or Nashville," said State Rep. Thomas Walker.

[wriddle082]

They should consider raising the limit along certain stretches of US 23 to at least 60 mph.  Like between Louisa and I-64, and between Greenup and South Shore.  Also US 68 between Paris and Millersburg, US 27 between KY 34 and the south end of the Nicholasville Bypass and between the Cumberland Parkway to KY 70, US 150 between Stanford and Danville, and most of the KY 914 bypass around Somerset.

[hbelkins]

They should consider raising the limit along certain stretches of US 23 to at least 60 mph.  Like between Louisa and I-64, and between Greenup and South Shore.  Also US 68 between Paris and Millersburg, US 27 between KY 34 and the south end of the Nicholasville Bypass and between the Cumberland Parkway to KY 70, US 150 between Stanford and Danville, and most of the KY 914 bypass around Somerset.

Actually, pretty much all of 23 between Paintsville and Catlettsburg could be raised to 65, as could all of the route between Pikeville and the Virginia line. Along with US 119 from Pikeville to the northeast foot of Bent Mountain (where the old, curvy section of four-lane begins) and all of KY 80 between Hazard and Allen.

Gov. Andy Beshear Announces Speed Limit Increase to 65 mph on 2 Sections of U.S. 68/KY 80 near Cadiz and Mayfield

You can tell it's a Kentucky gubernatorial election year. I don't remember prior speed limit increases being announced by the governor.

[CardInLex]

They should consider raising the limit along certain stretches of US 23 to at least 60 mph.  Like between Louisa and I-64, and between Greenup and South Shore.  Also US 68 between Paris and Millersburg, US 27 between KY 34 and the south end of the Nicholasville Bypass and between the Cumberland Parkway to KY 70, US 150 between Stanford and Danville, and most of the KY 914 bypass around Somerset.

Actually, pretty much all of 23 between Paintsville and Catlettsburg could be raised to 65, as could all of the route between Pikeville and the Virginia line. Along with US 119 from Pikeville to the northeast foot of Bent Mountain (where the old, curvy section of four-lane begins) and all of KY 80 between Hazard and Allen.

Gov. Andy Beshear Announces Speed Limit Increase to 65 mph on 2 Sections of U.S. 68/KY 80 near Cadiz and Mayfield

You can tell it's a Kentucky gubernatorial election year. I don't remember prior speed limit increases being announced by the governor.

Governor Steve Beshear announced higher speed limits on US 68/KY 80 (different section) back in 2012.

https://www.bgdailynews.com/news/new-65-mph-signs-go-up-on-u-s-68-ky-80/article_71895720-0d79-11e2-8222-0019bb2963f4.html#:~:text=The%20old%2055%20mph%20signs,65%20mph%20on%20the%20road.

[seicer]

And here is Governor Matt Blevin (R) pledging to raise speed limits on US 641 and KY 80: https://www.murrayledger.com/news/bevin-pledges-to-raise-speed-limits-on-641-80-if-elected/article_3563cfbc-380c-11e5-b328-9bae5338de9f.html

And Governor Ernie Fletcher (R) signed off on the increase to 70 MPH on interstates and parkways back in 2007: https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article43966167.html

How convenient H.B. forgot that 😉

[I-55]

And here is Governor Matt Blevin (R) pledging to raise speed limits on US 641 and KY 80: https://www.murrayledger.com/news/bevin-pledges-to-raise-speed-limits-on-641-80-if-elected/article_3563cfbc-380c-11e5-b328-9bae5338de9f.html

And Governor Ernie Fletcher (R) signed off on the increase to 70 MPH on interstates and parkways back in 2007: https://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article43966167.html

How convenient H.B. forgot that 😉

I'd say that the latter isn't like the former. A statewide speed limit increase approved by the senate is not the same as raising a few miles on one or two roads. Statewide limit increases are an actual big deal. A couple roads, maybe the local news writes an article.

[seicer]

The point is that it's generally something governors (and politicians) on both sides can agree on. Fletcher, Blevin, Beshear (Steve), and Beshear (Andy) have all raised speed limits, either in whole or in part.

[hbelkins]

The examples cited above are from news coverage, not press releases, and one was a campaign pledge by a non-incumbent candidate.