During its April 8 meeting, the Ohio County Fiscal Court approved the state's recommendations for the Rural Secondary Road Program and discussed the bridge projects on U.S. Highway 62 and State Route 505.
Representatives from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) came to the April 8 meeting of the Ohio County Fiscal Court to discuss the Rural Secondary Road Program. Each year the state presents a list of state roads in the county it will pave or improve. The state will use motor fuels tax revenue to pay for the road work. In addition to improving the state roads, the state also provides the ability for the county to use some funding, known as flex funds, to improve the roads of its choosing.
Jason Ward, with the KYTC, came before the court to announce which state roads would be improved over the next fiscal year.
State Route 764 will be repaved from the Daviess County Line to the Ohio County Line. State Route 369 will be paved from the nine mile marker to Buttermilk Lane. The KYTC selected to do a bridge deck overlay on a bridge on State Route 505, due to deterioration.
Ward informed the fiscal court it would receive around $280,000 in flex funds it could use on a road or roads of its choosing. The county could also choose to give the money back to the state and the state would choose a road to improve.
Ward told the court the state would use the flex funds to pave 2.997 miles of State Route 505 from U.S. Highway 231 to Indian Creek Bridge if the county gave the flex funds to the state.
Fourth District Magistrate Larry Keown made a motion the court accept the state’s Rural Secondary Road Program recommendations presented by Ward, with the exception of the flex funds. Third District Magistrate Brandon Thomas seconded the motion.
After a roll call vote the motion passed by a 5-0 vote. Second District Magistrate Jason Bullock was not present for the meeting.
No information was provided on which county roads would be improved by the fiscal court with the flex funds.
Information about the bridge replacements on U.S. Highway 62 and State Route 505 was also discussed during the meeting.
There was some discussion about the deterioration of Daviess Road, due to citizens using it as a detour due to the bridge construction. According to Jordan Camp, also with the KYTC, all of the state’s official detours were composed of state roads only, but locals would always find shorter routes. The state is not allowed to use county or city roads in a detour unless there are no other options. The state would then have to receive permission from the county or the city to use those roads in its detour.
In a past meeting, the fiscal court wondered if the state might be willing to repair Daviess Road due to the extra traffic caused by the state’s bridge repairs. According to Ohio County Judge-Executive David Johnston, the county sent a letter to Governor Steve Beshear applying for state funds to repair Daviess Road. Johnston said the estimated cost of repair was around $50,000.
Johnston said copies of the letter sent to the Governor were sent to other legislators in Frankfort, including State Representative Tommy Thompson. Thompson then sent his own letter to the Governor requesting funds to repair Daviess Road.
Regarding the completion of the bridge projects on U.S. Highway 62 and State Route 505, it was said both projects should be completed by the middle of June 2014, barring any setbacks.