Several Road, Ramp, Lane Closures Announced

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 5 Office has announced the following lane and ramp closures:

• Exit ramp from westbound I-264 to US 42 (Exit 22) will be closed from 8:00 p.m. today until 8 p.m. tomorrow. The signed detour for this ramp closure is westbound I-264 to Westport Road, access eastbound I-264 and proceed to US 42.
• Exit ramp from eastbound I-264 to northbound I-71 (Exit 23A) will be closed from 10:00 p.m. today until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow. The signed detour for this ramp closure is southbound I-71 to Zorn Avenue then accessing northbound I-71.
• The entrance ramp from US 42 to westbound I-264 will be closed from 8:00 p.m. today until 8:00 p.m. tomorrow.
• Lane closures are possible on I-71 in both directions between I-264 and the Lime Kiln Lane overpass (mile points 5.0 and 5.8) and on I-264 in both directions between US 42 and I-71 (mile points 22.1 and 22.9). These lane closures are possible from 8:00 p.m. today until 8:00 p.m. Sunday.
  These closures are for paving, guardrail installation, roadway striping and placing raised pavement markers as a part of the project  to construction acceleration and deceleration lanes aty this interechange. The project's complete work is scheduled to be completed by December 15, 2012.

 

The actual starting date and duration of these closures may be adjusted if inclement weather or other unforeseen delays occur. Dial 511 or log on to 511.ky.gov for the latest in traffic and travel information in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. You can also get traffic information for the District 5 counties at www.facebook.com/KYTCDistrict5.

Lastly, the Indiana Department of Transportation has announced that beginning Monday construction crews will be performing pavement improvements on I-64 at mile marker 112, west of Exit 113. These improvements will reduce westbound traffic to one lane and will last 3 days, weather pending. Motorists can expect lane shirts and speed reductions.

 

For the latest news and information about INDOT, please visit www.in.gov/indot or www.trafficwise.in.gov .

Milton Madison Bridge is Progressing

By Randall Embry
Transportation Planner

The Milton Madison Bridge Project is currently underway.  Many wonder how engineers can make this happen without causing a major shutdown of the bridge, disrupting the communities of Milton, KY and Madison, IN, and affecting the 10,000 vehicles that cross it each day.

Walsh Construction out of Chicago, IL has come up with an innovative technique called “truss sliding”, which entails sliding a 2,426 foot long truss bridge onto the existing piers of the Milton Madison Bridge. Over the past year, barges have been set up along the Milton side of the Ohio River to construct the trusses.  Once the new trusses have been constructed, they are moved by barge over to the bridge site and raised up by strand jacks to rest on temporary piers next to the existing bridge.  This process will only require interruption of cross-river traffic for a total of 10 days during the construction of the new bridge.  The first closure of the bridge was April 25-28, 2012.  The next closure is scheduled for early 2013.  In addition to building the Milton Madison Bridge, Walsh Construction is a member of both teams that were recently selected for the East End and Downtown portions of the Louisville-Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project.  In the not-too-distant future, there will be three major bridges over the Ohio River under construction in the KIPDA region. 

For more information on this innovative construction process and for further updates on the Milton Madison Bridge project, go to www.miltonmadisonbridge.com.

Notify Every Truck Program Named Project of the Year

The innovaive pilot program, NET (Notify Every Truck), overseen by the TRIMARC Traffic Operations Center in Louisville received the 2012 Project of the Year Award last week at the annual meeting of the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Midwest in Columbus, Ohio.

ITS Midwest is a combined-state chapter of ITS America, and includes Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. The ITS Midwesy Awards Program highlights the major accomplishments of the chapter's public and private sector members. The chosen Project of the Year award is based on merit and significance of the project to its ITS Community.

The NET program is designed to alert dispatchers, drivers, and commercial motor vehicle owners of major events on interstate highways or parkways throughout the state of Kentucky.  NET defines a “major event” as any directional total closure lasting longer than two hours.

The program began in 2008 as a collaborative effort between TRIMARC, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, the Kentucky Motor Transport Association, trucking company owners, the Towing and Recovery Association of Kentucky, environmental clean-up companies, and several local and state police agencies. 

NET is designed to ensure that incident information gets to the decision makers. Dispatchers are alerted when an Interstate Highway is closed so that decisions can be made to mitigate the effects of the closure.  With timely information, truck routes can be altered or rest stops changed to avoid delay. The TRIMARC Traffic Operations Center monitors the closure, updates the incident as necessary, and then re-notifies participants when the highway is cleared.  Valuable time, fuel, and pollutants are saved, secondary accidents are reduced, and responder safety is enhanced.

Participants sign up to receive text and/or email messages by completing a simple process at the program’s website: www.notifyeverytruck.com.  The only costs to participants are charges that may be incurred from their internet provider for service. 

 

Initially confined to the Louisville area, the program quickly garnered enthusiastic interest from commercial carriers (as well as state and federal agencies) and the area was extended to cover Kentucky segments of I-64, I-65 and I-71.  In 2012, the addition of a new server reduced the time required to cycle through the notification process and the program was expanded to cover all interstates and parkways in Kentucky.  When requested by the Kentucky State Traffic Operations Center, NET also sends out notifications regarding major incidents in Indiana and Tennessee.  To date, 259 Alerts have been issued.

KYTC Announces Ramp, Lane Closures

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) District 5 Office advises motorists of these lane and ramp closures:

• Interstate 264 (Watterson Expressway) in Jefferson County:  Contract crews are working on removing barrier wall, paving and guardrail installation as part of the project to construct acceleration and deceleration lanes at the I-71/I-264 interchange.  Motorists should expect lengthy delays in the project area tonight and all day Saturday.  The exit ramp from southbound I-71 to westbound I-264 (Exit 5) will be closed from 8:00 p.m. tonight until 2:00 p.m. on tomorrow.  The signed detour for this ramp closure is southbound I-71 to Zorn Avenue, access northbound I-71 and continue to I-264. In addition, the exit ramp from westbound I-264 to US 42 (Exit 22) will be closed from 8:00 p.m. today until 8:00 p.m. tomorrow as crews remove barrier wall and pave the ramp.  The right lane of westbound I-264 will also be closed during this time between I-71 and US 42.  The signed detour for the ramp closure is westbound I-264 to Westport Road, access eastbound I-264 and follow to US 42. Also be advised that the left lanes of Interstate 71 will be closed tomorrow from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. in both directions between I-264 and the Lime Kiln Lane overpass (mile points 5.0 and 5.8) to allow for completion of shoulder work and guardrail installation. MAC Construction and Excavating was awarded the contract for this project in the amount of $3.9 million.  The work is scheduled for completion by December 15, 2012.
• Interstate 64: Reduced to one lane in Jefferson County to allow for bridge joint repairs.  The eastbound side of I-64 will be reduced to one lane between Third Street and River Road (mile points 4.5 to 4.7) in downtown Louisville. These lane closures are scheduled from 9:00 a.m. tomorrow until 5:00 a.m. on Monday, November 19.
• Entrance ramp from Smyrna Parkway to eastbound I-265 (Gene Snyder Freeway) in Jefferson County: Temporarily closed due to installation of sound barrier panels.  This ramp is scheduled for closure tomorrow from 6:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. Motorists should follow the signed detour during this ramp closure via westbound I-265 to Preston Highway (Exit 12) and then access eastbound I-265.

             

  The actual starting date and duration of these projects may be adjusted if inclement weather or other unforeseen delays occur.  Dial 511 or log on to 511.ky.gov for the latest in traffic and travel information in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  You can also get traffic information for the District 5 counties at www.facebook.com/KYTCDistrict5.

             

  
  

Big Four Bridge Making Progress

Crews are working on the Indiana approach to the Big Four Bridge.

When KIPDA sets up a table at a local event (festivals, business expos, etc.) we are often asked about bridges.  Yes, sometimes it is about the Ohio River Bridges Project but in the past year it has been more about The Big Four Bridge. The Big Four Bridge is currently being converted from a railroad bridge to a bicycle and pedestrian bridge.

 KIPDA sought out to get an update on this project. Andy Crouch, City of Jeffersonville’s Engineer, said crews are erecting the steel tub girders and getting them into place. Crouch said officials expect to take delivery of the steel over Market Street on November 12^th and should have all the steel in place and to the Big 4 Bridge itself before the end of the year. He said the contractor is also hoping to have started pouring the concrete for the bridge deck before the end of the year.

 Mike Kimmel, of the Kentucky Waterfront Corp., said in late December the bridge will be open from the Kentucky side but that it will not connect to Indiana until their ramp is completed in June. Kimmel also said officials are still fundraising for decorative lighting that can be installed at any time.

Data Helps In Planning Efforts

By Stacey Burton
Transportation Planner

Data. For some, it causes eyes to glaze and thoughts of indecipherable numbers and formulas to pass through one’s head. However, data tells a story.  And when you get beyond the formulas and numbers, the story can be fascinating. 

KIPDA staff is currently working with a great deal of data in the development of the Connecting Kentuckiana Metropolitan Transportation Plan, and we hope to uncover a variety of stories as we sift through that data.  For example, where do people in our community go most often?  Where are the jobs today?  Where are they anticipated in the future? Where will housing be in the future? Will there be more multi-family housing? How many people are in the average household now?  What will that number be in the future? 

Review and analysis of the data will determine which stories become clearer, and we can use those to help inform the choices we make as we move forward with Connecting Kentuckiana.  Hopefully, decisions made using this data can help make your travel throughout our region  easier,  safer, and more efficient …  and improve your quality of life.  

Data and data analysis are critical for a better understanding of the world around us.  Data we use in developing a transportation plan assists us in better realizing the human condition and what we can do to make it better.  So the next time you see a lot of numbers and you feel the glaze coming on (and I can say that occasionally I am a victim myself),  try to remember that there is a story there. It is in the numbers. 

Need A Traffic Count? We Have Your Source!

By Andy Rush
Transportation Planner

KIPDA has been involved in all facets of traffic counting for many years, and staff continues to collect, report, and analyze traffic counts on a regular basis today. We use hundreds of traffic counts performed each year around this region by our partners ( such as the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, the Indiana Department of Transportation, and several other agencies) on a regular basis as part of our transportation planning efforts.


In addition to these counts from our planning partners, we collect dozens of traffic counts each year to fill in the gaps in the network where recent counts do not exist, to supplement ongoing planning efforts, and to assist local member governments in the region.

In order to better organize, display, and distribute this information from all of these different sources, KIPDA staff created on online tool on the KIPDA website that is available for anyone to use 24/7. The new site is at:

http://www.kipda.org/Transportation/TrafficCounts/

This tool is a map created using Google Maps that is backed by a database containing traffic counts. It is designed for easy use via any internet browser. The user of this new tool can simply zoom into the area they are interested in and click on one of the dots along the roadway representing an individual traffic count. Information about the count is then displayed, including the name of the road, the agency that counted at this location, the year of the count, and the corresponding 24-hour traffic volume.

There are currently about 3,200 unique traffic counts displayed on this new site. This includes counts in all nine counties in the KIPDA Region. New counts will be added and older counts will be replaced with new ones on a regular basis and as they are received by KIPDA.

For more information, call Andy Rush at (502) 266-6084 or email him at AndyH.Rush@ky.gov.