Pennyrile Parkway

The Edward T. Breathitt Pennyrile Parkway was the designation for the 71.306-mile-long (114.756 km) controlled-access highway from Henderson to Hopkinsville, Kentucky. The parkway originally began at an interchange with the Audubon Parkway and US 41 near the city of Henderson. It travelled south through rolling hills to its former southern terminus at Interstate 24 (I-24) south of Hopkinsville. A seven-mile (11 km) section was left unconstructed from US 41 Alternate south to I-24 despite its approval in 1976 from the Parkway Authority for construction. This connection was completed and opened to the public on March 1, 2011.[2] The first 1.8 miles (2.9 km) of the extension to the US 68 bypass (exit 6) were completed and opened to traffic in September 2008. The construction was then completed to exit 5, with the final section to I-24 opened on March 1, 2011. The parkway's northern terminus was truncated south to the Western Kentucky Parkway in 2013 when Interstate 69 was extended along that section of the highway. The remaining section of the Parkway (from I-69 to I-24) was redesignated as Interstate 169 on May 7, 2017, thereby replacing the last section of the Pennyrile Parkway.[3] Despite the designation changes, it continues to be referred to as the Pennyrile Parkway by most in the area.

Pennyrile Parkway
Route information
Length71.306 mi[1] (114.756 km)
Existed1976–2017
HistoryOpened in 1976
Northern section from Western Kentucky Parkway to Henderson redesignated as I-69 and US 41 on November 12, 2015
Southern section from W.K Parkway to I-24 redesignated as I-169 May 7, 2017
Major junctions
South end I-24 near Hopkinsville
 
US 41 Alt. in Hopkinsville

US 41 / KY 109 in Hopkinsville
US 68 / KY 80 in Hopkinsville
US 41 near Nortonville

US 62 in Nortonville
Western Kentucky Parkway in Nortonville
Audubon Parkway in Henderson
North end US 41 near Henderson
Location
CountiesChristian, Hopkins, Webster, Henderson
Highway system

The next phase of the extension—now completed—encompassed the portion of the parkway between US 41 Alternate and I-24. As of May 2010, the Lover's Lane interchange (exit 5) opened to local traffic via US 68 ramp (exit 5). The final segment, from US 68 to I-24, opened on March 1, 2011.

It was one of nine highways that are part of Kentucky's parkway system. The section between the Wendell H. Ford Western Kentucky Parkway near Mortons Gap and the northern terminus in Henderson became part of I-69 with the passage of federal legislation on June 6, 2008. The length of the road carried the unsigned designation Kentucky Route 9004 (EB 9004).

The road was named after Edward T. Breathitt, a former Kentucky governor. Originally called the Pennyrile Parkway from its opening in October 1969 at a cost of $69.2 million, it was renamed for Breathitt in 2000.

The parkway passed through the cities of Madisonville, Sebree, Mortons Gap, Slaughters, and Earlington. It intersected with the Wendell H. Ford Western Kentucky Parkway near Madisonville.

History

The Pennyrile Parkway previously used a green shield.

As a toll road

The Pennyrile Parkway, as with all nine parkways, was originally a toll road. By Kentucky state law, toll collection ceases when enough toll has been collected or funds received from other sources, such as a legislative appropriation, to pay off the construction bonds for the parkway. In the case of the Pennyrile, toll booths were removed in 1992 when bonds were paid off ten years ahead of schedule.

A section near the middle of the parkway, in the Madisonville area, during much of the parkway’s path through Hopkins County, was free from tolls from the road's opening; this section was also signed as US 41. The US 41 designation has since been removed and applied to the former US 41A through Madisonville and other nearby cities; this road was the original US 41 before the parkway opened. This redesignation followed a horrendous blizzard on January 17, 1994, which forced the then-Kentucky governor Brereton C. Jones to close all Interstates and limited access highways in the state. Heavy trucks were forced to take US 41A through downtown Madisonville for a week, snarling local traffic. The parkway between exits 7 and 9 was also toll free.

Toll plaza locations
Exit Location[4] Through cars charge Enter or Exit Notes
12 Hopkinsville (at KY 1682) 40 cents 40 cents
63 Sebree 60 cents 30 cents Sebree overpass was also charged a toll of 30 cents; now I-69 exit 134
68 Robards Free 20 cents Was a partial interchange until the late 1990s; now I-69 exit 140

Upgrades and re-designations

In 2008, funding was established for the extension of Interstate 69 through Kentucky as a part of a larger nationwide project to extend the Interstate to Laredo, Texas. The KYTC designated portions of the Pennyrile and Western Kentucky Parkways, and all of the Purchase Parkway to be integrated into the Interstate System. Work began almost immediately to upgrade deficiencies in the parkways to full Interstate Standards, such as upgrading bridge railing, converting several interchanges into conventional diamond interchanges, and reconstructing the interchange between the Pennyrile and Western Kentucky parkways to allow for free-flowing traffic on I-69. This work was completed on the Pennyrile stretch, exits were renumbered to match I-69's statewide mileage, and I-69 signs finally went up in 2013. In 2017, the remainder of the parkway was redesignated as Interstate 169.

Exit list

CountyLocationmi[1]kmExitDestinationsNotes
ChristianHopkinsville0.0000.000 I-24 Nashville, PaducahI-24 exit 81; exit 1 is for 24 west
5.1758.3285Lover's Lane HopkinsvilleServes James E. Bruce Convention Center
6.0009.6566
US 68 Byp. Hopkinsville
7.00011.2657
US 41 Alt. Hopkinsville, Fort Campbell
Southern terminus until 2009
7.93512.7708 US 41 Hopkinsville, PembrokeSouthern end of US 41 Truck overlap
9.35915.0629 US 68 / KY 80 Hopkinsville, ElktonServes Jefferson Davis Monument State Historic Site and the Hopkinsville-Christian County Airport
11.69718.82412
KY 1682 / US 41 Truck north Hopkinsville
Northern end of US 41 Truck overlap; serves Hopkinsville Community College
Crofton22.65336.45623 KY 800 CroftonServes Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park
HopkinsNortonville29.56847.58530 US 41 southSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
32.86152.88533 US 62 Nortonville, Greenville
34.27155.15434 Western Kentucky Parkway Elizabethtown, PaducahWestern Kentucky Parkway exits 38 A/B; signed as exit 34A (east), 34B (south) & 34C (north)
Mortons Gap37.07059.65837 KY 813 Mortons Gap
Earlington39.79464.04240 KY 2171 Earlington, Madisonville
Madisonville42.41868.26542 KY 70 Madisonville, Central City
44.33771.35344
US 41 Alt. / KY 281 Madisonville, Providence
Serves Madisonville Community College
45.20672.75245 US 41 north MadisonvilleNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
Hanson48.97978.82449 KY 260 Hanson
Slaughters54.07087.01754 KY 138 Dixon, Calhoun
WebsterSebree62.637100.80463 KY 56 Sebree, Owensboro
HendersonRobards68.363110.02068 KY 416Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Henderson76.258122.72576 US 41 to Audubon Parkway to KY 425 MorganfieldServes Henderson Community College and the Henderson City-County Airport; south end of US 41 overlap
77.210124.25777 Audubon Parkway east OwensboroWestern terminus of Audubon Parkway; Audubon Parkway exits 0 A/B
78.306126.02178 KY 2084 southSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
79 KY 351 Zion, Henderson
81
US 60 / US 41 Alt. Owensboro, Henderson, Evansville, Frankfort, Lexington, Louisville
Signed as exits 81A (east) and 81B (west/south). Highway continues north as US-41 toward Evansville, Indiana.
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. "Kentucky Transportation Cabinet - Division of Planning - Highway Information System Official Milepoint Route Log Extract". Archived from the original on April 30, 2007. Retrieved April 9, 2007.
  2. Carlyle, Jeffrey. "Edward T. Breathitt Pennyrile Parkway". KentuckyRoads.com.
  3. "H. R. 244" (PDF). Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  4. Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (1988). Kentucky Official Highway Map (PDF) (Map). c. 1:760,320. Frankfort: Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Pennyrile Parkway Toll Rates inset. Retrieved October 7, 2014.

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