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The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is reminding motorists to help protect themselves, their families, and their neighbors by using caution when driving through work zones as National Work Zone Awareness Week is recognized this week.
According to the KYTC, in 2023 Kentucky recorded 1,251 crashes in highway work zones which resulted in 247 injuries and 17 deaths, nearly triple the number of fatalities from the year prior.
KYTC District Four Public Information Officer Chris Jessie says the most important thing for a driver to do when on the road is pay attention.
“One of the main challenges in operating a work zone is distracted driving, and that’s not really anything new, and the phone continues to be that primary distracting factor for vehicle operators,” Jessie said.
The KYTC continues to try to implement safety measures in work zones, which come in many forms.
“The zones aren’t just those obvious big projects like we have going on at the interchange at Glendale or north of Lebanon Junction on I-65, but they’re mowing, they are striping when we’re repainting the road, patching a pothole, or replacing a pipe underneath,” Jessie said “So put that phone down, slow down, and pay attention to work zone signage. That’s for the safety of our crew that is out there working and our contractors, as well as your own as a motorist.”
Visit the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet on the web to learn more.
The deadline for Kentucky voters to register for the May 21 primary election is less than a week away.
“April 22 at 4 p.m.,” said Hardin County Clerk Brian D. Smith. “That is the deadline to register to vote to participate in the May primary, so we want to make sure, especially the folks who have newly moved here to Hardin County, and we see that a lot in our growing community, come on in and register to vote.”
The April 22 deadline is for new registrations, as previously-existing registrations had to be set to their current party affiliation by December 31.
Smith says if you are eligible to register, come on down.
“You can stop by the clerk’s office, you can do it at govote.ky.gov, or you can call our office at 270-765-6762,” Smith said.
Smith says with 2024 being a presidential election year a larger turnout is expected, so the county is preparing by adding extra machines to larger voting locations and expanding options.
“Last year we had 12 locations,” Smith said. “We’ve expanded to 15 to kind of fill in some of the gaps in our community where we felt like we needed to add additional locations to make it easier for folks to vote. The three new ones are Cecilia Valley, Heartland Elementary, and then Glendale Christian Church.”
Visit www.govote.ky.gov for more election information.
Federal, state, and local officials celebrated the progress being made at the new Interstate 65-Kentucky Route 222 interchange in Glendale Friday.
Planning on the interchange improvement project began more than a decade ago when local officials began preparing the Glendale Megasite for a potential manufacturer, which arrived in 2022 with the announcement of the BlueOval SK plants. The ribbon cutting Friday celebrated “substantial completion” of the interchange.
The project realigns Kentucky Route 222 and provides a safer, more efficient interchange for car and truck traffic. New on and off ramps for I-65 and new intersections, one at KY-222 and U.S. 31-W and the other at the entrance road to the BlueOval SK site, were also part of the project.
Governor Andy Beshear was in attendance Friday, which he mentioned during his appearance on the Quicksie Morning Show as part of the AT&T Morning Line Monday.
“We were at the new interchange, which is incredible at Glendale,” Beshear said. “That’s going to take a little bit of the pressure off the residents of Glendale that have been so good to the rest of the Commonwealth, welcoming that largest investment in the history of Kentucky, that game-changing state-changing investment, BlueOval SK.”
Work on the project will continue into the summer. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is still evaluating further improvement projects in the area as part of the Glendale Mobility Study.
The Elizabethtown Police Department is inviting area families to an awareness event Wednesday.
“In acknowledgement of April being Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Awareness Month, we are hosting a Chalk the Walk event at the police department this coming Wednesday between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. in an effort to raise awareness and put a stop to these heinous crimes,” said EPD Public Information Officer Chris Denham. “Citizens will be provided with sidewalk chalk as well as a space to draw murals or slogans that show their support for victims. Juanitos Tacos will be on site and dinner will be provided free of charge to all participants. In the event of inclement weather, we will move the event into the lobby of the police department and the art will be drawn on large poster boards.”
The EPD says that statistics show that nearly 2 in 5 women and 1 in 5 men will experience contact with sexual violence in their lifetime, and Kentucky is ranked sixth in the country for child victims of maltreatment at a rate of 14.7 per 1,000 children, nearly double the national rate.
More information on the event can be found on the Elizabethtown Police Department Facebook page.