Interstate 64 in Kentucky

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This article is about the section of Interstate 64 in Kentucky. For the entire route, see Interstate 64.

Interstate 64

I-64 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by KYTC
Length191 mi[1] (307 km)
Existed1956–present
NHSEntire route
Major junctions
West end I-64 / US 150 at the Indiana state line
Major intersections I-264 in Louisville
I-65 / I-71 in Louisville
I-264 in Louisville
I-265 / KY 841 in Middletown
I-75 in Lexington
East end I-64 at the West Virginia state line
Location
CountryUnited States
StateKentucky
CountiesJefferson, Shelby, Franklin, Woodford, Scott, Fayette, Clark, Montgomery, Bath, Rowan, Carter, Boyd
Highway system
← KY 63→ I-65

Interstate 64 (I-64) in the US state of Kentucky travels for 191 miles (307 km), passing by the major towns and cities of Louisville, Frankfort, Lexington, and Ashland. It has several major junctions with other Interstates, including I-65, I-71, I-264, and I-265 in Louisville and I-75 in Lexington.

The portion of I-64 in Kentucky is host to two "exceptionally significant" structures indicated by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). One is the Cochran Hill Tunnel,[2] a twin tube at Cherokee Park in Louisville built in 1974,[2] and the other is a 1960s-era modern-styled rest area near Winchester.[3]

In Downtown Louisville, I-64 passes under a public plaza called the Riverfront Plaza/Belvedere, one of the only structures in the state built on top of an Interstate.

Between the Indiana state line and Lexington, I-64 is named the Daniel Boone Expressway.

The entire length of I-64 in Kentucky has been designated as a portion of the Purple Heart Trail.[4][5]

Route description

Streaking lights on I-64 as seen from the horse/bike bridge at Seneca Park in Louisville

I-64 enters Kentucky at Louisville, paralleling the Ohio River along the Riverfront Expressway. It intersects with several downtown interchanges before coming to the Kennedy Interchange, where it intersects I-65 and I-71 in a tangle of ramps often referred to as the "Spaghetti Junction". Moving eastward, I-64 passes through Shelbyville, Frankfort, Midway, Lexington, Winchester, Mount Sterling, Owingsville, and Morehead, before leaving the state near Ashland at Catlettsburg. It overlaps I-75 as it makes an arc around the northeast of Lexington's urban core, with the exit numbers for I-75 used for the concurrent portion. The two Interstates separate a few miles east of downtown Lexington.

History

The Cochran Hill Tunnel in Louisville, also known as the Cherokee Park Tunnel, underwent restoration in 2001, which involved the reconstruction of the concrete pavement, the installation of new tiles, and the improvement of lighting. Later, the lights in the tunnel were replaced after multiple lights were found to be faulty. The tunnels, which opened in 1974, are one of three sites in Kentucky deemed "exceptionally significant" by the FHWA. The designation meant that it will be very difficult for the stretch of Interstate running through Cherokee Park ever to be widened.[3]

Streaking Lights on I-64 as seen from the horse/bike bridge at Seneca Park in Louisville

Construction began on a Kentucky Route 180 (KY 180) interchange improvement project in the summer of 2006.[6][7] The $34-million (equivalent to $47.3 million in 2023[8]) project entailed the rebuilding of six bridges, the widening of KY 180 to four lanes in the vicinity of the interchange, and the conversion of the ramps into a diamond interchange. The project was finished in the autumn of 2008.

In March 2007, Governor Ernie Fletcher signed Senate Bill 83, which allowed for an increase in speed limits on rural Interstates and parkways. Speed limits on rural sections of I-64 were increased from 65 to 70 mph (105 to 113 km/h), following an engineering study by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. New signage was installed in July[9]

On June 7, 2007, I-64 between the junction of I-264 and I-65 and I-71 in Downtown Louisville was closed to through traffic.[10] The section of highway featured three lanes of traffic in each direction on an elevated viaduct paralleling the Ohio River, carrying 90,000 vehicles per day. The closure was part of a $50-million (equivalent to $70.8 million in 2023[8]) refurbishment project that involved replacing 132 expansion joints and repaving more than four miles (6.4 km) of Interstate and interchanges.[11] The work was completed in two phases, starting with the entire project area being closed on three weekends in June, followed by a section of highway closed from 3rd to 22nd streets in early July to early August. However, the Interstate was not finished because of the section between Frankfort and Lexington. The state could not attain the right-of-way here because of very famous horse parks northwest of Lexington. After a couple of tries to get the right-of-way, the state was able to get the right-of-way and began construction on this segment. It was the last segment of I-64 to be completed in Kentucky.

8664

Controversially, I-64 runs through Louisville Waterfront Park, a key part of the revitalization of Downtown Louisville, and portions of the park exist under it. 8664, a grassroots campaign with popular support but little apparent political momentum, aimed to reroute and remove I-64 to enhance Louisville's waterfront. I-64 through Louisville would be resigned as I-364. I-64 was to be widened over the park as a part of the Ohio River Bridges Project. But plans to widen the freeway over the park were abandoned to reduce costs of the Ohio River Bridges Project.[12]

Exit list

CountyLocation[13]mi[14]kmExitDestinationsNotes
Ohio River0.00.0Sherman Minton Bridge


 I-64 west / US 150 west; continuation into Indiana
JeffersonLouisville0.91.41
 I-264 east – Shively		Western terminus of I-264, exits 0A-B westbound; tri-stack interchange
2.74.33
 US 150 east (22nd Street)		Eastern terminus of concurrency with US 150
3.96.34 9th Street/ Roy Wilkins Avenue – Downtown
4.57.25B3rd Street / River Road – DowntownWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
5.28.45A I-65 (Toll Bridge) – Nashville, IndianapolisSigned as exit 5A (south) and 5B (north) eastbound
5.99.56
 I-71 north – Cincinnati		Eastbound access only; I-71 exit 1B northbound to I-64 eastbound, 1A southbound to 64 westbound; southern terminus of I-71
6.410.37 US 42 / US 60 (Mellwood Avenue / Story Avenue)
7.812.68Grinstead DriveAccess to Lexington Road (US 60 Alt) to Southern and Louisville Seminaries
8.113.0Cochran Hill Tunnel
10.316.610Cannons Lane
12.319.812 I-264 (Watterson Expressway) – Louisville International AirportSigned as exits 12A (west) and 12B (east) eastbound; I-264 exits 19A-B
14.924.015 KY 1747 (Hurstbourne Parkway) – Jeffersontown, Middletown, Industrial Parksigned as exits 15A (south), 15B (south-local access), and 15C (north) eastbound
Jeffersontown17.127.517Blankenbaker Parkway (KY 913)No signage for KY 913
18.930.419 I-265 (Gene Snyder Freeway) / KY 841Signed as exits 19A (south) and 19B (north); I-265 exits 25A-B
ShelbySimpsonville27.544.328 KY 1848 (Buck Creek Road) – Simpsonville
Shelbyville31.851.232 KY 55 (Taylorsville Road) – Taylorsville, Shelbyville
35.156.535 KY 53 (Mt Eden Road) – Shelbyville
​43.369.743 KY 395 (Waddy Road) – Waddy, Peytona
FranklinFrankfort47.776.848

 KY 151 to US 127 south – Lawrenceburg, Graefenburg
48.878.549
 US 460 east – Frankfort
53.085.353 US 127 – Lawrenceburg, FrankfortSigned as exit 53A (south) and 53B (north)
57.893.058 US 60 – Versailles, Frankfort
WoodfordMidway65.2104.965

 KY 341 to US 62 west – Versailles, Midway
Scott​68.8110.769
 US 62 east (Paynes Depot Road) – Georgetown		Ramps provide access to both eastbound and westbound US 62
FayetteLexington74.7120.275
 I-75 north – Georgetown, Cincinnati		Western terminus of concurrency with I-75, exit 118 southbound, uses I-75 exit numbers and mile markers.
76.9123.8115
 KY 922 (Newtown Pike) to Bluegrass Parkway – Lexington, Blue Grass Airport
79.2127.5113 US 27 / US 68 (Broadway) – Lexington, Paris
81.3130.881
 I-75 south – Richmond, Knoxville		Eastern terminus of concurrency with I-75, exit 111 northbound.
87.3140.587 KY 859 - Bluegrass Station
ClarkWinchester94.0151.394
 KY 1958 to KY 627 / Van Meter Road – Winchester
96.1154.796 KY 627 – Winchester, ParisSigned as exits 96A (south) and 96B (north) westbound
​97.5156.998
 Mountain Parkway east – Prestonsburg, Campton		Eastbound exit and westbound entrance; westbound exit is via a U-turn at exit 96
​101.6163.5101 US 60 – Winchester, Mount Sterling
MontgomeryMount Sterling109.6176.4110 US 460 / KY 11 – Flemingsburg, Mount Sterling, Paris
112.3180.7113 US 60 – Mount Sterling, Owingsville
BathOwingsville121.1194.9121 KY 36 – Owingsville, Frenchburg
122.9197.8123 US 60 – Owingsville, Salt Lick
Rowan​132.8213.7133 KY 801 – Sharkey, Farmers
Morehead137.1220.6137
 KY 32 east / Flemingsburg Road – Flemingsburg, Morehead
Carter​156.0251.1156
 KY 2 to KY 59 – Olive Hill, Vanceburg
Olive Hill161.3259.6161 US 60 – Olive Hill, Grayson
Grayson171.4275.8172

 KY 1 / KY 7 to KY 9 (AA Hwy.) – Maysville, Grayson
​178.3286.9179
 KY 67 north (Industrial Parkway) – Greenup, Wurtland
BoydCoalton181.2291.6181 US 60 – Grayson, Ashland
Ashland185.2298.1185
 KY 180 to US 60 – Cannonsburg, Ashland
​190.5306.6191 US 23 – Ashland, Louisa
​191.0307.4
 I-64 east – Huntington		Continuation into West Virginia
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Related route

Main article: Interstate 264 (Kentucky)

Interstate 264

LocationLouisville–Glenview Manor
NHSEntire route

I-264 is an inner loop route in the Louisville metropolitan area. It is signed as the Georgia Davis Powers Shawnee Expressway between its western terminus at I-64 in Shawnee and U.S. Route 31W (US 31W)/US 60 (Dixie Highway) in Shively and as the Watterson Expressway from US 31W/US 60 to its northeastern terminus at I-71 in Glenview Manor. Along the way, it provides access to Louisville International Airport at its junction with I-65.

See also

References

  1. ^ Federal Highway Administration (October 31, 2002). "FHWA Route Log and Finder List: Table 1". Retrieved February 24, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Final List of Nationally and Exceptionally Significant Features of the Federal Interstate Highway System" (PDF). Federal Highway Administration. November 1, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 15, 2011. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Elson, Martha (January 17, 2007). "Tunnel could stop wider I-64". The Courier-Journal. Archived from the original on April 8, 2013.
  4. ^ "The Purple Heart Trail Program". The Military Order of the Purple Heart. Archived from the original on August 15, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  5. ^ "I-64 Designated the Purple Heart Trail". KentuckyRoads.com. December 30, 2002. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  6. ^ Hart, Kenneth (January 1, 2007). "Road Work Ahead". The Independent (Ashland). Retrieved January 2, 2007.
  7. ^ "I-64 improvement project under way in Boyd". The Independent (Ashland). October 5, 2007. Retrieved October 10, 2007.
  8. ^ a b Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved November 30, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the MeasuringWorth series.
  9. ^ "New speed limit signs erected". The Independent (Ashland). January 4, 2007.
  10. ^ Tabor, Britney (June 8, 2007). "I-64 shutdown starts without major problems". The Courier-Journal. p. B1.
  11. ^ Shafer, Sheldon (March 11, 2007). "Big I-64 headache coming". The Courier-Journal. p. A1.
  12. ^ "Study says cost-cutting measures could reduce Ohio River Bridges". WDRB. June 2, 2011. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 4, 2014.|
  13. ^ U.S. Census Bureau. "2009 Boundary and Annexation Survey Maps". Retrieved June 4, 2009.[dead link]
  14. ^ Google (2 August 2014). "Overview map of Interstate 64 in Kentucky" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 2 August 2014.


Interstate 64
Previous state:
Indiana 		Kentucky Next state:
West Virginia
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