U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao today took part in a kickoff event for the construction of the New Dixie Highway Project in Louisville, Kentucky on Friday.
The project was awarded $16.9 million in Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) discretionary grant funding in 2015.
“The U.S. Department of Transportation’s $16.9 million TIGER grant is providing nearly half of the funding for the New Dixie Highway Project to greatly improve the Louisville area transportation network,” said Secretary Chao.
“I have spent a lot of time driving Dixie Highway and am delighted to be part of this effort to improve the safety and efficiency of the city’s busiest traffic corridor.”
“As a fellow Kentuckian and Louisvillian, I am so delighted that the U. S. Department of Transportation is able to contribute in such a vital way to improving the quality of life for the community that I love.”
(Dignitaries were on hand Friday morning for the launch of the construction of the new Dixie Highway project. Courtesy of WLKY News Louisville and YouTube. Posted on Dec 22, 2017)
The project will make street improvements along the 14-mile Dixie Highway corridor through the South End of Louisville, and will include safety upgrades for pedestrians, improved intersections, raised medians, turn lanes and better signage.
Additionally, it will install Bus Rapid Transit infrastructure (BRT) a faster, more reliable bus line with state-of-the-art buses and three dozen bus stops and stations.
The BRT line will be a new route with strategically located stops along Dixie Highway / 18th Street between the Gene Snyder Freeway and Broadway and into the downtown core.
It will also include Intelligent Transportation System upgrades to improve traffic flow and provide transit signal priority.
These improvements will enhance the local investments in new buses, bus stops and kiosks.
“I want to express my appreciation to Secretary Chao for her leadership at the federal level and her willingness to talk to Kentuckians,” Kentucky Department of Transportation Secretary Greg Thomas said.
“She has had an open door policy from Day One.”
“The Secretary of Transportation looks over the entire United States of America, and it’s a lot to say grace over,” added Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer.
We also appreciate that she has a special place in her heart for her hometown of Louisville.”
The second part of her day was be spent touring the United Parcel Service (UPS) facility in Louisville and visiting the Air Traffic Control Tower at Louisville International Airport.
To learn More about the New Dixie Highway Project, go to https://louisvilleky.gov/government/new-dixie-highway.
