1. WEBSTER COUNTY - The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to close KY 145 in WEBSTER County on Monday, May 20, 2013. 

KY 145 will be closed at the 0.2 mile point to allow the replacement of a cross drain.  This is near the Webster-Henderson County Line just north of the Poole Community. The closure is expected to begin around 8:30 a.m., CDT, with work completed by about 3:00 p.m. 

There will be no marked detour.  However, motorists may self-detour via  KY 2253/Cairo-Dixie road north of the closure point and US 41-Alternate south of the closure point.


2. UNION COUNTY - The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans daytime closures along about a 5-mile section of KY 360 in UNION County starting Monday, May 20, 2013, and continuing through about Friday, May 24, 2013.
 
These daytime closures of KY 360 will be at various locations between about the 8 mile marker at Uniontown and the intersection with KY 359 at mile point 13.6 are to allow the replacement of about 8 cross drains. The work along this section of KY 360 will be near Smith Mills/Uniontown Road, KY 1637/John Hite Road, Hodgins Road and Sam Yates Road.
 
There will be no marked detour.  Flaggers will help alert motorists to appropriate detour routes.  Local access will be maintained on each side of the closure point.
 
Whenever practical, the crew may provide one lane traffic with alternating flow controlled by flaggers at some locations. The roadway at each of these locations along KY 360 will close at approximately 8:00 a.m., CDT, and is expected to reopen to traffic at about 3:30 p.m., each day, weather permitting.


SOURCE: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

The contractor working on concrete pavement repairs along the KY 425 Henderson Bypass plans to reopen one section and close another at 5:00 a.m., CDT, on Saturday, May 18, 2013. 

The contractor has completed the initial round of work between mile point 2.429 at the intersection with US 41-Alternate and mile point 4.474 at the intersection with US 41.  This section of the KY 425 Henderson Bypass is expected to reopened at 5:00 a.m., Saturday. 

At that same time, the contractor plans to CLOSE the KY 425 Henderson Bypass between US 60 at mile point 0.0 and US 41-Alternate at mile point 2.429.  This section is expected to remain closed to all traffic through Friday, May 24th. 

Local access will be maintained along the work zone for businesses and property owners along this section. 

A marked detour will be provided.  However, many of the 9,000 vehicles that normally travel this section of the KY 425 Henderson Bypass each day will likely travel through Henderson on US 60/Green Street. 

Once work is complete on this section, the contractor will schedule one additional closure for concrete pavement Repairs on the section between US 41 and the Breathitt-Pennyrile Parkway.

JBI is the prime contractor on this $780,521 highway improvement project. 

Timely traffic advisories for the 11 counties of KYTC Highway District 2 are available by going to www.facebook.com/kytcdistrict2.  You do not have to be a Facebook member to access this page.


SOURCE: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

*Update 8:00 a.m. 05/04/13: Due to weather conditions, this closure of the KY 425 Bypass at Henderson for concrete pavement repairs is postponed until Monday.

*Original Post:  A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to close the KY 425 Henderson Bypass for the first of several rounds of concrete pavement repair starting Saturday, May 4, 2013. 

This initial closure of the KY 425 Henderson Bypass runs from mile point 2.429 at the intersection with US 41-Alternate to mile point 4.474 at the intersection with US 41.  This section of the KY 425 Henderson Bypass is expected to remain closed until about May 15th. 

A marked detour will be provided.  Local access will be maintained for businesses and property owners along this section. 

Once work is complete on this section, the contractor will schedule two additional closures for concrete pavement repairs on the sections between US 60 and US 41-Alternate, as well as from US 41 to the Pennyrile Parkway. 

JBI is the prime contractor on this $780,521 highway improvement project.

Timely traffic advisories for the 11 counties of KYTC Highway District 2 are available by going to www.facebook.com/kytcdistrict2.  You do not have to be a Facebook member to access this page.

SOURCE: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet New Release

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to restrict traffic to one lane along the Audubon Parkway in Henderson County starting Monday, April 29, 2013.

Both eastbound and westbound traffic on the Audubon Parkway will be restricted in 4-mile segments to allow shoulder and erosion control work along the median. 

The crew plans to start at the Audubon Parkway/Pennyrile Parkway Interchange at Henderson and work eastward to about the 8 mile marker along both the eastbound and westbound lanes.  All traffic will move to the right-hand or driving lane in this work zone. 

This median shoulder and erosion control work is expected to take about 3 to 4 days to complete. 

Appropriate caution is required where equipment, flaggers, and maintenance personnel are along the roadway in close proximity to traffic flow. Timely traffic advisories for the 11 counties of KYTC Highway District 2 are available by going to www.facebook.com/kytcdistrict2.  You do not have to be a Facebook member to access this page.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to restrict southbound traffic to one lane on the US 41 Twin Bridges between Henderson and Evansville today.  

This southbound lane restriction is to allow the repair of a section metal hand railing that was knocked off the bridge by a recent traffic crash. 

Southbound traffic will be restricted to one lane starting at about 8:30 a.m., CDT, today.  The lane restriction is expected to be in place about 3 to 5 hours to allow the railing repairs.

1) OWENSBORO:  A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to close the US 60 ramps to the westbound lanes of the Audubon Parkway at Owensboro, KY, starting at 7:00 p.m., CDT, on Friday, April 19, 2013.

The closure of US 60 ramps to the Audubon Parkway westbound is to allow reconstruction of the ramps.  Starting promptly at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, April 19th, westbound ramps B and D connecting US 60 to the Audubon will be closed through the weekend.  The Westbound ramps will reopen to traffic by 6:00 a.m. on Monday, April 22nd.

A marked detour for traffic from US 60 to the eastbound Audubon will be provided via US 60, KY 81, KY 56 and KY 1554 to Exit 18 at Sorgho. All eastbound lanes on the Audubon Parkway remain closed for reconstruction from the KY 1554 Exit 18 at Sorgho to the Audubon Parkway/US 60 Interchange at Owensboro. 

This section of the eastbound Audubon Parkway and eastbound ramps to US 60 are expected to remain closed until about May 4th.  There is a marked detour for eastbound traffic via KY 1554 at Audubon Parkway Exit 18.  The contractor has 20 working days to complete work on the eastbound ramps or face substantial penalties.

This closure of Audubon ramps to and from US 60 at Owensboro is to allow reconstruction of the ramps as part of a larger general rehab project along the Audubon from mile point 16.5 near the Green River Bridge at the Daviess-Henderson County Line to the Audubon Parkway/US 60 Interchange in Owensboro.
 
Once all of the ramp work is completed on the Audubon/US 60 Exit 24 Interchange on May 4th, the contractor will start work on the main line of the Audubon from the 16 mile marker to the 24 mile marker.   There will be a crossover at Audubon Parkway mile point 14.5 and at mile point 24 so two-lane traffic can be established on the eastbound lanes to allow the contractor to work along the westbound lanes.


2) OWENSBORO:  As a reminder, prep work for painting the KY 2262 Ohio River “Blue Bridge” in downtown Owensboro, KY, will be kicked off Sunday night, April 21, 2013, with the start of overnight closures running Sunday through Thursday.  The contractor is allowed to close the bridge from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. CDT, Sunday through Thursday, for rigging work needed to secure containment tarps that will go up when the main cleaning and painting work starts after Owensboro’s International Bar-B-Que Festival in May. Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officials want everyone to be fully prepared for the overnight closures starting April 21st and closure of the bridge to all traffic starting May 13th. 

The Blue Bridge in downtown Owensboro – formally called the Glover Cary Bridge and the KY 2262 Ohio River Bridge– will be open with no lane restrictions the weekend of Owensboro's International Bar-B-Que Festival.  However, the contractor can schedule lane restrictions and overnight closures before then to prepare for work to start immediately after the festival. The painting contract calls for the bridge to be closed to all traffic from about May 13 through Nov. 15. Work on approach spans can be completed from beneath the bridge with only minor traffic disruptions. 

During the Sunday through Thursday 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., CDT, overnight closures farmers should continue contacting the Owensboro Police Department to make crossing arrangements for farm equipment to cross during hours that the bridge is open.


3) HENDERSON: A house moving company plans to transport a Habitat for Humanity House from Henderson High School to 732 5th Street in Henderson during overnight hours sometime in the next week. Kenneth Barker with Heartland Home Movers of Benton, KY, says the move will most likely be Friday night or Monday night, providing preparations work out as planned.
 
The home will be moved from the high school down KY 351/Zion Road/Second Street into Henderson.  The home movers will turn onto Heilman Avenue and follow it to 5th Street to place the home on a lot. Barker expects the move to start about midnight and the 2-mile trip to take about an hour to complete. Motorists should be aware of this home move during the overnight hours. Barker’s permit requires him to have a police escort.  In case of weather issues, the permit is good for a ten day window.

A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to be on-site to start prep work for painting of the KY 2262 Ohio River Bridge in downtown Owensboro about April 15th. It will take the contractor several days to get equipment delivered, set up, and prepared for actual work to start on The Blue Bridge. 

No lane restrictions or overnight closures are planned until after that date.  According to Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 2 spokesman Keith Todd, that would mean about the earliest motorists would see lane restrictions and/or overnight closures on the The Blue Bridge would be around April 21st.

Current plans call for the Blue Bridge to be closed to all traffic for the painting project after May 12th, allowing it to be fully open during Owensboro’s International Bar-B-Que Festival. Prior to the Bar-B-Que Festival, periodic overnight closures and lane restrictions will be allowed during the week to configure rigging and position equipment to ensure that work begins quickly once the contractor is given full control of the structure. 

Todd said the contractor will be meeting with engineers in the next week or two where they will firm up a start date for preliminary work required to prepare for the cleaning and painting.  

The painting project is jointly funded by Kentucky and Indiana.   The Blue Bridge was originally scheduled for painting in 2017.  Following the re-development of Owensboro’s riverfront, local lawmakers moved funding for new paint up in the Kentucky road plan.  The Indiana Department of Transportation agreed to advance their share of the funding to put the project on track for the 2013 construction season.  

Closing the bridge after May 12th will impact commuters and about 30 businesses that depend on bridge traffic.  Many of the businesses affected by the 6-month closure are along IN 161 between the bridge and Indiana 66 at Reo.  Closing of the bridge requires a detour via the U.S. 231 William Natcher Bridge that adds about 10 miles to a trip from Reo to downtown Owensboro, KY.  The Blue Bridge was also closed for 3 months during the 2011 construction season for a partial rehab of the bridge deck. 

The painting contract calls for the bridge to be closed to all traffic from about May 13th until November 15th this year in an effort to complete work on the main span during one construction season.  The Blue Bridge would be expected to reopen to traffic by November 15th in time for Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday traffic.  Work on the approach spans can be completed from underneath the bridge with only minor traffic disruptions.  

Spartan Contracting, LLC,  of Ohio, was the successful bidder at  $10,070,000 for painting of the KY 2262 Ohio River Bridge in Downtown Owensboro.  The contract came in almost $10.4 million below the engineer’s estimate for the project.
 
The KY 2262 Ohio River Bridge is also known as the Blue Bridge and the Glover Cary Bridge.  The 4,622 ft. structure connects KY 2262 and Indiana State Route 161 over the Ohio  River at Owensboro.  Approximately 8,500 vehicles cross the Ohio River on the Blue Bridge between Kentucky and Indiana in an average day.  The structure opened to traffic in September 1940 as a toll bridge.  The tolls were discontinued in 1954. The Blue Bridge is at Ohio River navigation mile point 756.3.


SOURCE: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

FROM THE KENTUCKY TRANSPORTATION CABINET:
HENDERSON, KY – The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) needs the cooperation of Henderson-area commuters on Tuesday, April 2, while crews work to repair storm damage near the heavily traveled U.S. 41/U.S. 60 North cloverleaf. 

The project to repair a major washout, clean ditches, and correct erosion issues will require a re-routing of traffic at the interchange.  Ramps from U.S. 60 to U.S. 41 northbound will be closed and northbound traffic on U.S. 41 will be restricted to one lane to facilitate the work starting at 7:30 a.m., CDT, Tuesday.  The lane restriction will extend for three-quarters of a mile along U.S. 41 North to a point about halfway between Barrett Boulevard and Marywood Drive.  

“This is the most heavily traveled section of highway in the region,” said KYTC District 2 Chief Engineer Kevin McClearn. “These ramp closures and traffic restrictions will require a high level of cooperation from our commuters traveling through and around this work zone.”  

Crews will repair a large washout just north of Barrett Boulevard, near the Ramada Inn. In addition, they will work on erosion issues and clean the ditch that runs along the U.S. 60 ramps and along the east side of U.S. 41 from the cloverleaf to Barret Boulevard.  

The lane restrictions and ramp closures will be put in place about 7:30 a.m. CDT on Tuesday.  Engineers believe the work can be completed in one day, but additional restrictions could be required on Wednesday. “To help avoid ‘carmageddon’ we’re asking motorists to think ahead about ways they can avoid these traffic restrictions at the U.S. 60/U.S. 41 North Cloverleaf on Tuesday,” McClearn said.  “Much of the U.S. 60 passenger vehicle traffic can detour via Marywood Drive, Watson Lane, or Wathen Lane-Wolf Hills Road.  We have alerted the Henderson Police Department and Henderson County Sheriff’s Department so they can be prepared to assist with traffic flow.” 

There will be no marked detour.  Local traffic can use Marywood Drive from U.S. 60 to U.S. 41 North.  Truck traffic from both U.S. 60 East and U.S. 60 West planning to travel U.S. 41 North should self-detour via the U.S. 41 Bypass South to KY 351, then exit and take the U.S. 41 Bypass North to get access to U.S 41 North. 

About 41,000 vehicles travel the affected section of U.S. 41 at Henderson each day.  In addition to the closure of U.S. 60 ramps at mile point 10.291 and mile point 10.369, traffic on U.S. 41 will be restricted to one lane from mile point 16.047 to about mile point 16.7.  

Timely traffic advisories for the 11 counties of KYTC Highway District 2 are available by going to www.facebook.com/kytcdistrict2.  You do not have to be a Facebook member to access this page.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (March 12, 2013) – Volunteers will be out in force next week to spring clean Kentucky highways. The Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) announced today that Adopt-a-Highway Spring Clean Week is March 17-23.  

“The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet appreciates the efforts of our Adopt-a-Highway volunteers who help keep our highways and communities beautiful and litter free,” Transportation Secretary Mike Hancock said.  

Nearly 750 groups participate in Kentucky’s Adopt-a-Highway program, which was established in 1988. Volunteers clean approximately 5,100 miles of roadside annually, setting an example of responsible environmental stewardship. The Adopt-a-Highway program promotes public environmental awareness and supports tourism. The program also creates a partnership between citizens, community and government, and establishes a sense of pride in the Bluegrass State.  

GET INVOLVED! 
How can you contribute to the community, make a difference, send a message and educate others – all while having fun with friends and family? Join Kentucky’s Adopt-a-Highway Program.  By taking responsibility for an area roadway, you set an example in your community.  

The environment is everyone’s responsibility. Adopt-a-Highway provides the opportunity to be a part of the solution. Each year, the KYTC spends about $5 million and 200,000 worker hours to remove 96,000 bags of highway litter. Adopt-a-Highway volunteers help save thousands of taxpayer dollars and demonstrate that a clean environment is a shared responsibility.  

Any permanently established business, association, community or public organization, or government entity can adopt a stretch of highway. A wide range of groups throughout Kentucky now participate, including homemaker clubs, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, high school organizations, service clubs, veterans, college fraternities and sororities, sports teams and church groups, among others.  

Volunteers adopt two-mile sections of highway under a two-year, renewable contract with the Transportation Cabinet. Adopt-a-Highway coordinators can explain the fundamentals of the program to volunteer groups, work with group members in locating an available highway, and keep them notified of news and upcoming events. Litter pickups are held at least four times per year or as many times as necessary to keep adopted areas reasonably litter-free. The Cabinet coordinates three annual clean-up efforts.

HOW DO I JOIN?
Groups interested in becoming members of the Adopt-a-Highway Program can find details and district coordinator information at http://adopt-a-highway.ky.gov/.  Safety guidelines are provided to volunteers and should be reviewed prior to each cleanup.  

The Adopt-a-Highway coordinators help volunteers get in touch with the county maintenance crew superintendent to arrange warning sign placement on the date of pickup. Trash bags and safety vests can be obtained at each state maintenance facility, and litter removal is provided by the state highway crews. 

For more information, visit our Web site at http://adopt-a-highway.ky.gov/.  For questions or comments, contact Miranda Thacker, 502-564-3419, or e-mail Miranda.Thacker@ky.gov


SOURCE: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

MADISONVILLE, Ky. (MARCH 5, 2013) –  The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has awarded a contract to an Ohio firm for the cleaning and painting of Owensboro’s Blue Bridge. 

Spartan Contracting, LLC, was the successful bidder at  $10,070,000 for painting of the KY 2262 Ohio River Bridge in Downtown Owensboro.  The contract came in almost $10.4 million below the engineer’s estimate for the project. 

Transportation Cabinet District 2 Spokesperson Keith Todd said within a few days the contractor should be issued a notice to proceed. “At that time the contractor will schedule a meeting with engineers in District 2 to work out a date for work to start,” Todd said.  “There will generally be a week or two needed for the contractor to ‘mobilize’ or move equipment and materials to the bridge to prepare for work to start.” 

While the contract does not allow the bridge to be closed to traffic until after May 12th of this year for work on the main truss spans, the contractor can start working beneath the approach spans as quickly as weather allows.  Todd said the Transportation Cabinet will provide regular updates to the public as work on the project ramps up. “There are certain temperature requirements for painting that would likely prohibit much activity on the approach spans until daytime temperatures are up in the 50’s on a regular basis,” Todd noted. “That would likely mean work could start under the approach spans sometime in the next month.” 

The contractor will then hold off on closing the bridge until after the International Bar-B-Que Festival in May.  The deadline for completing the first season of work is Nov. 15, 2013. 

Also known as the Blue Bridge and the Glover Cary Bridge, the 4,622 ft. structure connects KY 2262 and Indiana State Route 161 over the Ohio River at Owensboro.  Approximately 8,500 vehicles cross the Ohio River on the Blue Bridge between Kentucky and Indiana in an average day.  The structure opened to traffic in September 1940 as a toll bridge.  The tolls were discontinued in 1954. The Blue Bridge is at Ohio River navigation mile point 756.3. 

Anyone who would like regular updates on the cleaning and painting project can go to www.facebook.com/kytcdistrict2.  You do not have to be a Facebook member to access this page.