ForConstructionPros.com

With increasing volumes of traffic on aging highways, the repair and construction of new roads is more critical than ever. One state taking the lead in trying to get ahead of this problem is Kentucky.

"The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is pushing forward with the most aggressive highway improvement program in Kentucky's history, investing more than $1 billion in highway construction in 2006," says Mark Brown, a public information officer with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. "The state is on track to surpass that figure in calendar year 2007."

There are many high-profile projects going on in the state, including Restore 64, which is making improvements to Interstate 64 through downtown Louisville; a project rehabilitating the Hwy. 61 twin bridges over the Ohio River in Henderson, KY; and the Heartland Parkway, a long-term project to improve the road that connects the Martha Layne Collins Bluegrass Highway and the Louie B. Nunn Cumberland Parkway to provide better access to Kentucky's Central Lakes region.

Another project, just north of the Heartland Parkway plan, is near Taylorsville Lake and is an extension of Kentucky Hwy. 555.

"The purpose of the extension is to provide better access for central Kentucky to the Louisville area, the Martha Lane Collins Bluegrass Parkway and other area roads," says Brown.