Work Zone at KY 731/Lone Oak Road/Broadway Intersection in Paducah starts Monday, Nov. 8
Pedestrian crossing work to take about 2 to 4 weeks to complete
PADUCAH, Ky. (Nov. 5, 2021) – A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) plans to establish a work zone at the KY 731/Lone Oak Road/Labelle Street intersection with Broadway and Buckner Lane in Paducah starting Monday, Nov. 8, 2021.
This work zone is to allow the addition of pedestrian crosswalks that comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and other safety enhancements. The intersection is in front of the Old Paducah Coke Plant and Independence Bank location on Paducah's west side at KY 731 mile point 0.415.
In addition to ADA-compliant sidewalk ramps on the east leg of the intersection, the contractor will be digging trenches to allow the KYTC District 1 traffic group to install electric wiring to add fully intergraded pedestrian crossing activators to the traffic signal.
KYTC District 1 Chief Engineer Kyle Poat said KYTC traffic engineers and the Paducah city engineer have concluded that adding marked pedestrian crossings without a signal activator to stop all traffic at the intersection would not sufficiently enhance safety.
"Due to the skew that brings Lone Oak Road southbound traffic into the intersection, there is some concern that the addition of a sidewalk ramp and delineated crosswalk could create confusion by introducing a pedestrian into the street with a vehicle making a right turn with no warning," Poat said. "A pedestrian-activated button to prompt an 'All Red' for vehicle traffic eliminates that concern."
Poat noted the coming improvements should enhance pedestrian connectivity to the Buckner Lane corridor heading west, as well as to Independence Bank and other businesses in and around the Old Coke Plant, from the sidewalk along Lone Oak Road to and from the Paducah Middle School.
For the long term, Poat said, KYTC engineers have performed planning studies over the last five years for various intersections and are actively seeking funding to move forward with the next phases of implementation. That effort could help fund more substantial enhancements at the intersection in the future, including the possibility of better pedestrian access at the southeast corner of the intersection.
A check of police crash reports for the intersection indicated 34 total crashes over the last five years, with five injuries. Approximately 15,540 vehicles travel through the intersection in an average day.
Work on the new sidewalk ramps and trenching for pedestrian crossing activation buttons are expected to start on Monday.
This work zone will be active during daylight hours anytime weather allows. Motorists should be alert for restrictions along the curb area required to facilitate the work. Some delays are possible during the movement and placement of equipment. Appropriate caution is required where equipment, flaggers, and construction personnel are along the roadway in close proximity to traffic flow.
Harper Contracting, LLC, is the prime contractor working under a master agreement with the KYTC District 1 Signal Crew. The concrete work and necessary electrical work is estimated to take about two to four weeks to complete, weather permitting. Placement of thermal pavement markings for the crosswalk will be temperature dependent.
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