Overhanging rock removal on KY 15 in Knott County near KY 160 means highway shutdown
KNOTT COUNTY (October 20, 2020) –Bobby Smith, Knott County Maintenance Superintendent at Highway District 12 of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, said that work could start as soon as tomorrow on a project to remove overhanging rocks from a site on KY 15 near the intersection with KY 160 in the Carr Creek Lake area.
The location, at mile point 4.1, is the site of several recent rockfalls. “There are dangerous overhanging boulders left after a rockfall in January of this year,” Smith said. “We need to remove them before the winter freeze-thaw cycle sets in or they could dislodge and come down on the highway.”
Before the removal can begin, Smith explained, an access road to the top of the hill must be built. “We will not impact traffic during the time that the road is being built,” Smith said. “This will take about two or three days.”
Once the crew has roadway access, the highway will be shut down, completely closed to all traffic, for at least one working day, possibly two. “We can’t be sure until we get started because we don’t know what is behind or underneath what we can see,” Smith explained.
Two methods of removing the rocks are being considered: hammering, or drilling, to break up the bigger boulders into smaller rocks or blasting the site. “Either way,” Smith said, “we cannot have traffic traveling through the work zone.”
The site on KY 15 is just past the intersection with KY 160, on the Perry County side. Motorists coming from Letcher County will be able to access KY 160.
However, traffic coming from Perry County into Knott County will not be able to access KY 160. Signs and message boards will be posted in Perry County to direct all southbound traffic to detour to KY 80E and then to KY 160S at Hindman.
Likewise, motorists traveling in Knott County who usually use KY 15S to get to KY 160 will need to take KY 1231N to KY 550E to KY 160S. Those who normally drive through the work zone coming from the Letcher County direction will need to take KY 160N to KY 80 on the other side of Hindman and work their way back to KY 15.
“We are not sure yet what day we will be ready to close the road,” Smith said. “It will be within the next week, unless we encounter difficulties that we are not currently aware of. People need to be alert and pay attention to the signs and message boards.”
###
|
