More than 300 turn out in Prestonsburg to view options to extend Mountain Parkway
KYTC seeks feedback on alternatives to create four-lane corridor between Salyersville and Prestonsburg
PRESTONSBURG, Ky. (April 14, 2015) – More than 300 people attended a public meeting Tuesday to offer feedback on two options under consideration for extending the Mountain Parkway from Salyersville to Prestonsburg.
During the meeting at Prestonsburg Elementary School, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet representatives presented information on preliminary alternatives to create a four-lane route that would extend the parkway about 14 miles through Magoffin and Floyd counties.
The two options presented were widening along the existing corridor (KY 114) or building a new road along a cross-country corridor to the north of KY 114. Attendees were able to view detailed maps, review comparisons of estimated costs and impacts, and speak with project engineers and representatives.
“Either alternative would provide a safer, quicker route between Salyersville and Prestonsburg,” said Marshall Carrier, a KYTC engineer who is project manager for the Mountain Parkway Expansion. “But we want to make sure we choose the route that best serves Eastern Kentucky over the long haul, and that’s why we wanted to present these preliminary options to the public.”
Click on these links to view informational materials from the meeting:
Detailed map of alternatives (Large file and may take time to load)
Meeting handout
Comment form
The Mountain Parkway Expansion team began looking at a cross-country alternative to a more than decade-old plan to widen KY 114 because of the large number of homes and businesses along the current corridor. Preliminary estimates show that 231 properties would be affected by expanding along KY 114, 111 of which would require relocation to complete the project. Current estimates show that a new cross-country corridor would affect 97 properties and require 28 relocations.
The estimated cost to expand along the KY 114 corridor is $249 million, compared with an estimated cost of $256 million to build a new parkway on the cross-country corridor. Should additional funding become available in the future, one of the two preliminary alternates on display at the meeting would be further refined and taken to construction.
KYTC will use the public comments it receives to help determine whether the Mountain Parkway Expansion team should continue to study both preliminary alternatives between Salyersville and Prestonsburg or focus solely on widening along KY 114.
The Mountain Parkway Expansion project will improve a transportation corridor that runs 46 miles between Campton and Prestonsburg. The project will widen 30 miles of the existing parkway from two lanes to four lanes and extend the parkway by about 16 miles, including the expansion of Restaurant Row in Salyersville.
When the entire expansion project is completed in six to 10 years, it will close the only gap in a 400-mile, four-lane, high-speed corridor for commerce and mobility across Kentucky from Pikeville to Paducah.
Public comments continue
Written and oral statements were accepted at the meeting, along with general comments. Citizens can continue to comment on these proposals through April 30 by emailing [email protected].
For more information on the Mountain Parkway Expansion, visit www.MtnParkway.com or follow the project on Twitter (@MtnParkway) or on Facebook (www.facebook.com/mtnparkway). Additional information also is available at the Mountain Parkway Expansion Office at Magoffin Plaza in Salyersville, 447 Parkway Drive (U.S. 460).
