If you’ve driven Interstate 24 recently between Christian County and Montgomery County, Tennessee, then you’ve probably thought yourself that something needs to be done to improve that roadway, and you’re not the only one.
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has released a report detailing a comprehensive study they conducted recently to identify the need for, and the scope of, improvements along I-24 and how it would impact drivers for years to come. The study included 90 miles of I-24 from McCracken County to the Tennessee state line, and 29 of those miles are in Christian County.
During the recent Christian Fiscal Court meeting, Christian County Judge-Executive Jerry Gilliam says this study really only provided proof of what they already knew—I-24 needs to be widened to three lanes in both directions.
Roughly nearly 50,000 of passenger traffic, so not counting tractor-trailers, travel the interstate between Kentucky and Tennessee daily, and Judge Gilliam says that’s only set to increase in the future.
That effort would not come cheap however, with Gilliam saying after all is said and done, the cost is projected to be roughly $30 million a mile.
Tennessee already has plans to widen their side of the interstate, set for 2034. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has no timelines set for the Kentucky side of things, but it would likely be many years in the making, if it gained approval.
Gilliam says they will continue to push for the expansion at the state and federal level, as that stretch of roadway is only expected to get busier and more congested in the coming years, and it’s something they need to begin advocating now.