The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has started making offers to property owners along the KY 54 corridor for the highway widening project set to begin in the next few years.
Officials say the project, which received $5 million in Federal Highway Administration funds in October 2018, will improve traffic flow and safety in the area. A combined total of $15 million in federal and state funds has propelled the project forward with the acquisition phase expected to be completed by the end of 2020.
According to KYTC Public Information Officer Keith Todd, 44 parcels of land will need to be acquired for the first phase of the project, which runs from U.S. 60 to the intersection with Bold Forbes Way at the entrance to the Thoroughbred East subdivision, a distance of just over 1.2 miles. The land acquired will be used for both the highway widening and a utility corridor.
“Appraisals are complete and we have started making offers to some of the property owners,” Todd said. “I am told we actually have some folks who have accepted offers. Negotiations continue with others.”
Todd said this project does not involve acquiring a lot of acreage from property owners.
“I don’t think there are very many property owners where we are taking acres from them,” Todd said. “It’s more a feet kind of thing. But every piece of property is different. There may be one where we have to take three or four parking spaces. There may be others where we are taking a couple of feet off of a lawn. It varies from property to property.”
Todd said KYTC has about $10 million in funding available for acquisition at this time.
“We may have to ask for some more funding later,” he said. “Whenever the acquisition team gets to a point where they need additional funding to keep moving forward they will request some extra funds.”
The KY 54 widening project originally called for the expansion of the roadway from U.S. 60 extending eastward to Philpot to six lanes, but Todd said it has since been divided into several smaller projects to make it more likely to be funded.
Segment 1 will focus on widening the area from the former bypass to Thoroughbred East by incorporating three lanes of traffic going each direction.
Segment 2 will focus on Thoroughbred East through Thruston-Dermont Road, making it five lanes with a turn lane.
Segment 3 will widen the area between Thruston-Dermont Road and Countryside Drive by constructing a 3-lane road with a curb, gutters and center turning lane.
Lastly, Segment 4 will involve widening the area between Countryside Drive to Jack Hinton Road in Philpot. The final segment’s construction will include 8-foot paved shoulders and turning lanes at strategically placed intersections.
“Funding for utility work and heading on into construction will have to be included in the next road plan which the legislature will formulate during the Spring 2020 session with construction expected a year or two beyond that,” Todd said.
