3.1. National Projects

Euclid Avenue Lexington, Kentucky

The Project: Euclid Avenue is a state-maintained minor urban arterial that runs along the northern boundary of the University of Kentucky campus. The purpose of this project was improvement of mobility needs of the area due to congestion at some intersections along the corridor. The route serves local traffic and regional commuters, with mixed land uses of retail and housing. The project involved resurfacing and restriping an existing 4-lane road into a 3-lane road with bicycle lanes. 

Location: Lexington, Kentucky

Context Setting: Urban

Road Classification: Urban Arterial

Stakeholders: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government (LFUCG), City Council and community members

The Process: The initial plan to convert Kentucky Avenue from an existing 4-lane road to a 5-lane section without acquiring additional right-of-way met with significant opposition from the public.  An alternative plan that took into consideration pedestrian and bicyclist needs featured a 3-lane road with bicycle lanes along the entire corridor. Use of a single corridor for all modes of transportation,(i.e., passenger cars, public transportation, bicyclists, and pedestrians) was the context sensitive solution. In order to promote proper use of bicycle lanes, an education campaign was launched as part of the project. 

Lessons Learned: The flexibility and open mindedness of the KyTC to consider alternative designs and implement concepts suggested by the public indicated to the public that their opinion is valued and is seriously considered and the level of trust increased.

LFUCG’s support to develop a pedestrian and bicycle-friendly corridor was essential to the project’s success.  The road diet concept has worked very well by reducing speeds without increasing traffic congestion.

The Case Study for this project can be found online at: http://www.contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/case_studies/kentucky_euclid/resources/kentucky_euclid_pdf/