TRAFFIC ADVISORY: Steel Repairs Continue on John F. Kennedy Memorial Bridge in Jefferson County
Lane closures beginning Tuesday, Oct. 8
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Sept. 27, 2024) – A steel repair project will resume in October on the John F. Kennedy Memorial Bridge, which carries Interstate 65 South over the Ohio River in Louisville. Steel for the repairs has been fabricated, and contract crews will begin mobilizing on Oct. 8, to resume work.
Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 6 p.m., the right two lanes of the Kennedy Bridge will be closed overnight through Wednesday, Oct. 9, at 6 a.m. Following the overnight lane closures, the right lane will remain closed until Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 6 a.m.
Once repairs on the downstream side are completed, work will shift to the upstream side, requiring additional lane closures. The left three lanes will be closed overnight beginning Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 6 p.m. through Wednesday, Oct. 16, at 6 a.m. The left two lanes will remain closed until Tuesday, Dec. 24, at 6 a.m.
This repair project, which began in July, follows federally required inspections of older bridges across the country built with “T-1” steel.
The steel – a grade of high-strength, quenched and treated steel known for being highly amenable to welding and machining – is no longer used in bridge construction but was used in the 1950s and 1960s around the country. In May 2021, a fracture was discovered in a weld, referred to as a “butt weld,” in a T-1 steel component of the Interstate 40 Hernando de Soto Bridge between Memphis, Tennessee, and West Memphis, Arkansas. As a result, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in December 2021 issued a memorandum to states to identify and inspect specific T-1 steel bridges to verify the soundness of all butt welds with the use of non-destructive testing.
While the welds posed no immediate safety issues, Transportation Cabinet inspections followed for seven Kentucky bridges containing T-1 steel components, including the Kennedy Bridge.
Inspections and repair plans took place over the last two years. Engineering firm Michael Baker International tested 696 welds and identified 44 locations that would need future repairs.
The project, which will address those repairs, is being completed by Southern Road and Bridge, LLC, under a nearly $3 million contract and is expected to be completed by May 2025.
The date and duration of this work may be adjusted if inclement weather or other unforeseen delays occur. Visit goky.ky.gov for the latest in traffic and travel information in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. You can also get traffic information for the District 5 counties on Facebook and X (formerly known as Twitter).
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