Kentucky Transportation Cabinet – District 3
Road construction season for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 3 area is turning out to be one of the busiest seasons in recent memory and for Warren County especially. The biggest project currently underway is the rehabilitation and resurfacing of Interstate 65 in Warren County from the 13 mile marker to the 28 mile marker. Both directions are currently in the rehabilitation phase. Once that phase is complete, the next phase is to get the road resurfaced. There will be times the interstate will be down to one lane in that area and remain down to two lanes throughout the project. Traffic delays and congestion are expected. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Another major corridor under construction in Warren County is U.S. 231 (Scottsville Road). There are two major projects to improve safety and traffic flow in their respected areas. The first section is between the Geenwood Mall entrance at Bryant Way and KY 884 Three Springs Road. Turning lanes are being added from U.S. 231 to Cave Mill Road and on Cave Mill Road to U.S. 231. Access management and some signal changes with the Greenwood Square Shopping Center are also being done. These improvements will help the entire corridor from Greenwood Mall to KY 884 (Three Springs Road).
The second section under Construction is U.S. 231 (Scottsville Road) in the Alvaton area. A Highway Safety Improvement Project is constructing multiple Restricted Crossing U-Turn (RCUT) intersections. These RCUTS improve safety by allowing motorists to cross only one direction of traffic at a time. Lane closures and a 55 mph speed limit can be expected by motorists. The project is expected to be completed later this year.
A project to improve the function, safety, and overall efficiency of two roads in downtown Bowling Green were recently completed. Pavement rehabilitation, resurfacing, and striping changes recently took place on U.S. 68 (Kentucky and Adams Street). The Kentucky Street section was restriped with one travel lane, marked parking areas, and a bicycle lane. Pedestrian safety was greatly enhanced with the dropping from two travels lanes to one. The blind spot situation where one lane of traffic stops, but the other lane doesn’t is eliminated. The safety of motorists has improved with the clearly marked parking area by giving motorists more space and better vision. On the Adams Street section, parking was eliminated and a bicycle lane was added. The Adams Streets section still has two travel lanes.
U.S. 31-W (Nashville Road) from U.S. 231 (Campbell Lane) to I-165 is currently in the middle of a preventive maintenance project. The road is being resurfaced with a thin layer of asphalt to preserve the life of the current pavement. The left turn lanes in both directions to I-165 were also extended to help with capacity issues at the intersections.
A resurfacing project on U.S. 234 (Cemetery Road) was recently completed from I-65 to Hayes Lane. Several more projects in the area are ongoing and more are on the way. Motorists are asked to please be patient, slow down, and obey posted speed limits.
City of Bowling Green
Projects that are in the planning and/or design phase include Phase II of the Downtown Improvements project. Phase I was completed late in 2019 and addressed deteriorating public infrastructure including streets, sidewalks, pedestrian and bicycle accessibility, and street lighting primarily around Fountain Square Park. The second phase will focus on streetscape improvements on College and State Streets from Spring Alley to 6th Avenue, including portions of 8th Avenue and Main Avenue (east and west of the downtown square). The City has funding in the current budget for the construction.
Design is being finalized for the final two phases of Shive Lane Improvements. These final two phases will continue the widening from the recently completed roundabout at Ken Bale Boulevard and the existing Shive Lane intersection and continue to Lovers Lane. With this construction, a roundabout will be included at the intersection with Middle Bridge Road. Additionally, a traffic signal will be installed at Lovers Lane and two signals will be removed: one at Middle Bridge Road and one at Fruit of the Loom Drive. A multi-use path is also included along the length of both phases.
Additionally, the City and the developer of property near the intersection of Nell O’Bryan Court and Ken Bale Boulevard worked together to install a traffic signal to help address increased traffic that will be generated as this area continues to build out. The installation was complete in early June and is up and operational.
The City’s Annual Overlay contract was awarded in September 2020 and is nearing completion. This project includes approximately 14 miles of paving on City streets along with necessary rehabilitation or complete reconstruction of adjacent handicap ramps to meet ADA standards. The Fiscal Year 2022 paving project locations have been identified and that contract is planned to begin in late July.
The City is committed to providing a walkable community and therefore the City allocates funds to build new sidewalks in areas that show a need. Each year, candidate projects are prioritized based upon a set scoring system to determine where funds will be spent. Construction has begun for sidewalks along Loving Way, Holly Drive, Highland Way, and North Lee Drive. The City is currently prioritizing new sidewalk projects for Fiscal Year 2022 funding. Additionally, the City continues to allocate funds annually to rehabilitate existing sidewalk. The Sidewalk Maintenance Program identifies the process by which staff inspects and chooses which areas will be inspected in a given year. Depending on funding, the City can correct safety hazards in hundreds of locations across the city per year.
The City will soon begin construction on the final phase of the multi-use path along Smallhouse Road, from Ridgecrest Way to Scottsville Road. The 8’ wide path will connect existing greenways and sidewalk along Campbell Lane to the Covington Woods Park area. This construction is anticipated to begin late summer.
The City’s newly implemented Greenways Program mimics the Sidewalk program where candidate projects are ranked and selected annually based upon allocated funding. Design will begin this summer for the upcoming fiscal year’s projects along portions of Smallhouse Road, Bryant Way, and Lovers Lane.
The Public Works Department continues to work with the City’s Neighborhood & Community Services Department to provide better pedestrian connections throughout town. Sidewalk will soon be constructed along Johnson Drive and Dennis Way. Additionally, a Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant awarded to the City in conjunction with the (former) Greenways Commission will provide pedestrian and bicycle connections between existing downtown greenways facilities, key destinations in the West End, and will ultimately improve problematic intersection crossings.