Project will add bike lanes, create leaner streets and overall safer road

COVINGTON, Ky. – KYTC District 6 will begin milling and paving operations on W. Fourth Street from Garrard Street to Philadelphia Street tonight, -- Thursday, June 5 – as part of a of a resurfacing project to provide a safer road for all users, reducing vehicular travel on Fourth Street and adding a dedicated bike lane.

The project is rooted in a year-long collaborative effort between Covington and KYTC to improve connectivity for all road users.

“KYTC and the City have worked together over the past year to realize this realignment of Fourth Street, reclaiming a highway running through the middle of Covington as a safer street for everyone whether they’re on four wheels or two, two legs or four,” said Covington Director of Special Projects & Inter-Governmental Affairs Elizbeth Wetzel. “The City has added street trees and a widened sidewalk to align with KYTC’s reduced vehicular lanes and new designated bike lane.”

Starting tonight, crews will work between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. resurfacing W. Fourth Street, west of Garrard Street to Philadelphia Street, a distance of 0.75 miles. One lane of traffic will be maintained on W. Fourth Street during evening hours. Two lanes of traffic will be maintained during non-working hours. The work is being performed overnight to mitigate traffic disruptions.

"Our goal is to create safer roads for all users. This roadway reconfiguration in Covington will improve safety for bicyclists, and make the road leaner by reducing the lane width for motorists," said Bob Yeager, Chief District Engineer for KYTC District 6. "This type of innovative engineering solution is proven to slow down drivers, and improve safety for all.”

The lane reallocation from Garrard to Johnson Street will reduce the number of vehicular travel lanes from three to two. Those lanes will be reduced from 12-feet wide to 11-feet wide through the corridor. The innovative engineering solution will create a leaner street, slowing vehicle speeds.

The current right lane on W. Fourth Street through the area will become a dedicated bike lane. The five-foot wide bike lane will feature a two-foot buffer from vehicular traffic. The bike lane will be one-way with bicyclists traveling westbound on W. Fourth Street.

As part of the project, travel lanes for motorists and bicyclists will be clearly marked, and signage will be upgraded on W. Fourth Street to denote the traffic pattern change.

Road project schedules are subject to change due to inclement weather or other unforeseen circumstances. The most current information on road construction in Northern Kentucky can be found at District 6 Roadshow or the Driving Northern Kentucky Progress website.

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