Officials with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 2 announced Thursday that the Pennyrile Parkway conversion to I-169 is now in progress.
In an effort to modernize, the work is being conducted along different points in the corridor, spanning all the way from I-24 in Christian County, to the I-69 interchange in Hopkins County.
Modernization entails the updating and improving of infrastructure to meet current standards — standards that are required in order for the parkway to become part of the highway system.
This means necessary improvements have already come, or are coming, to bridges, ramps, road surfaces and other elements along the corridor, to rectify safety and operational requirements.
For the Pennyrile Parkway, this workzone spans just south of Exit 33 to the I-69 interchange, which is now reduced to one lane and has a width restriction of 16 feet, with a work zone speed limit of 55 mph. Ramp extensions at Exit 33, US 62 in Nortonville, and the southbound exit ramp from I-69 at Exit 34 are also underway.
The extension of the southbound on-ramp and northbound off-ramp at Exit 33 involves widening the bridges over Pleasant Run Creek. Concrete barrier walls were installed for this purpose in early September 2023 and will be in place until around April 2024.
The remaining work following Exit 33 in Nortonville includes pavement rehabilitation of the ramps at US 41, Exit 30, three vertical clearance revisions, and guardrail replacement at various locations.
Cross-slope corrections in Christian County were addressed in 2023, with pavement rehabilitation extending from I-24 to Exit 12 at KY 1682.