The Martha Layne Collins Blue Grass Parkway is a freeway running from Elizabethtown, Kentucky to Woodford County, Kentucky, for a length of 71.134 miles (114.479 km). It intersects with Interstate 65 at its western terminus, and U.S. Route 60 at its eastern terminus. It is one of seven highways that are part of the Kentucky parkway system. The road is designated unsigned Kentucky Route 9002 (BG 9002). It is constructed similar to the Interstate Highway system, though sections do not measure up to current Interstate standards.
 Bluegrass Parkway | |
|---|---|
| Martha Layne Collins Blue Grass Parkway | |
 | |
| Route information | |
| Maintained by KYTC | |
| Length | 71.134 mi[1] (114.479 km) |
| Major junctions | |
| West end |  I-65 in Elizabethtown |
| East end |  US 60 near Versailles |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Kentucky |
| Counties | Hardin, Nelson, Washington, Anderson, Mercer, Woodford |
| Highway system | |
| |
History
edit
As a toll road
editIn 1963, the Kentucky Turnpike Authority recommended what was then known as the "Central Kentucky Turnpike" be constructed from Elizabethtown to the Lexington-Frankfort area.[2] The parkway was opened in November 1965 as the Kentucky Bluegrass Parkway (the "Kentucky" was dropped a few years later) and was originally a toll road, as were all Kentucky parkways. The parkway route largely parallels that of U.S. Route 62. State law requires that toll collection ceases when enough tolls are collected to pay off the parkway's construction bonds which occurred in 1991.[citation needed]
Toll plazas and charges
editThe table below shows the locations of the former toll plazas, and toll charges that were previously charged for consumer-sized, or class 1 vehicles.
| Exit | Location [3][4] | Through cars charge | Enter or Exit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Boston | 40 cents | 20 cents |
| 34 | Bloomfield | 50 cents | 25 cents |
| 59A-B | Lawrenceburg | 40 cents | 20 cents |
| Full-length trip | $1.30 | ||
Name changes
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In 2003, the road was renamed in honor of Martha Layne Collins, the first female governor of Kentucky. Previously, it was the Kentucky Bluegrass parkway (and signed as "KB Parkway"), then later renamed the "Blue Grass Parkway" (sometimes with "Bluegrass" as one word, though in the highway's name, it was officially two words), and often called the "BG Parkway" because of the abbreviation once used on its original signs from 1965 until they were replaced by a shield with the Collins name in 2003.[4]
Route description
editThe parkway begins in Hardin County, at a trumpet interchange with I-65 near Elizabethtown. It traverses Nelson, northern Washington, northern Mercer, southern Anderson, and Woodford counties, passing Bardstown, Lawrenceburg, and ending just east of Versailles at US-60, where high-speed ramps allow traffic to continue to Lexington via US-60 eastbound.[5]
The toll plazas, which were removed in 1991, were located at the following locations:
- Exit 10 at Boston
- Exit 34 at Bloomfield, and
- Exit 59 at Lawrenceburg.[6]
Proposals
editConnection with Interstate 64
editThis article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2007) |
No connection to I-64 was planned as it had not been constructed and would not open until the late 1970s. There have been talks for a direct connection from the eastern terminus of the parkway at US 60 to I-64, but nothing has been finalized. Such a connection would likely face opposition in the Lexington area due to the many horse farms that would be adversely affected as the thoroughbred breeding industry is an important direct employer and a major tourist draw in the region.[7]
Exit list
edit| County | Location | mi[1] | km | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hardin | Elizabethtown | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0 |   I-65 to Western Kentucky Parkway – Louisville, Elizabethtown, Nashville, Paducah | Western terminus and signed as exits 0A (south) & 0B (north); I-65 exit 93 and parkway ends |
| Youngers Creek | 7.900 | 12.714 | 8 |    KY 583 to US 62 – Youngers Creek | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | |
| Nelson | | 9.523 | 15.326 | 10 |  KY 52 to US 62 – New Haven, Boston | |
| Bardstown | 20.459 | 32.926 | 21 |  US 31E – Bardstown, Hodgenville | ||
| 24.469 | 39.379 | 25 |  US 150 – Bardstown, Springfield | |||
| | 33.301 | 53.593 | 34 |  KY 55 – Springfield, Bloomfield | ||
| Washington | Brush Grove | 41.401 | 66.628 | 42 |   KY 555 south – Springfield, Lebanon | |
| Anderson | | 47.838 | 76.988 | 48 |  KY 53 to US 62 – Willisburg | |
| | 58.791 | 94.615 | 59 |   US 127 to I-64 – Lawrenceburg, Frankfort, Harrodsburg, Danville | Signed as Exits 59A and 59B | |
| Woodford | Versailles | 68.248 | 109.835 | 68 |  KY 33 – Versailles | |
| 71.134 | 114.479 | 72 | US 60 – Versailles, Lexington | Eastern terminus and signed as exits 72A (west) & 72B (east); parkway ends | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | ||||||
References
edit- ^ a b "Kentucky Transportation Cabinet — Division of Planning — Highway Information System Official Milepoint Route Log Extract". Archived from the original on April 30, 2007. Retrieved April 8, 2007.
- ^ "Park City Daily News — Google News Archive Search". google.com.
- ^ Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (1988). Kentucky Official Highway Map (PDF) (Map). c. 1:760,320. Frankfort: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Bluegrass Parkway Toll Rates inset. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
- ^ a b Kentucky Department of Transportation (1976). Kentucky Official Highway and Parkway Map (PDF) (Map). c. 1:760,320. Frankfort: Kentucky Department of Transportation. Bluegrass Parkway Toll Rates inset. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
- ^ "Bluegrass Parkway: Lexington to Elizabethtown - Kentucky - Interstate 411". interstate411.us. March 29, 2018. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- ^ Kentucky Department of Transportation (1976). Kentucky Official Highway and Parkway Map (PDF) (Map). c. 1:760,320. Frankfort: Kentucky Department of Transportation. Bluegrass Parkway toll schedule inset.
- ^ Puente, Victor (January 30, 2024). "Good Question: Are there any plans to connect the Blue Grass Parkway to I-64?". WKYT.com. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- Carlyle, Jeffrey. "Re: Lexington loop?" Online posting. May 1, 2002. May 1, 2002.
- "Report on Examination of Financial Statements and Supplemental Data — Central Kentucky Toll Road (Bluegrass Parkway)." Cook and Taylor Certified Public Accountants. June 30, 1982. Accessed March 12, 2004.