FORT THOMAS, Ky. — After five years, Mary Ingles Highway (KY 6335) reopned to traffic in Campbell County on Wednesday, according to a press release from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.
KY-6335 connects Bellevue, Dayton, Silver Grove and Fort Thomas. The highway, also known as Old Route 8, was closed between River Road and Tower Hill Road due to a landslide in 2019.
The landslide caused significant damage to the highway including large cracks in the roads.
State Route 8 was already so riven with zig-zagging fissures and potholes that driving on it could be genuinely dangerous even before the landslide.
KYTC branch manager Mike Bezold previously told WCPO 9 just two weeks before the landslide that the problem with fixing the road was money.
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“We did a study about a couple of years ago to determine what it would cost to get Route 8 up to just a typical two-lane, up to 10-foot lanes,” according to Mike Bezold, the KYTC branch manager. “It was over 50 million dollars just to get Route 8 up to just passable standards.”
The state legislature wasn’t willing to set aside that amount of money for a road serving an estimated 2,000 vehicles each day, Bezold said.
In 2022, state officials notified Campbell County Fiscal Court that they intended to give up ownership of the almost three-mile stretch running from River Road to Tower Hill. By statute, ownership would be offered to the county and then to the city. The cost of repairing and maintaining the road was steep, according to officials.
In August 2023, work to repair the highway finally began with the hopes of it reopening, KYTC said.
KYTC District 6 Chief District Engineer Bob Yeager said the project brought state leaders, local utility companies, a railroad company and private home and business owners together.
“With numerous improvements completed, we’re excited to reopen this vital highway that connects several river cities, provides a faster route for emergency personnel and improves safety overall,” Yeager said.
Maintenance was done from Tower Hill Road to KY 445 — totaling 2.869 miles. The following improvements were made:
- Excavation
- Installing railroad rails
- Wall cribbing
- Adding retaining walls "to shore up the hillside"
- Reconstructing the shoulder
- Fixing the piping
- Adding culverts
- Paving
- Adding a guardrail
KYTC said the project cost $9.1 million from a combination of maintenance project funding and master agreements.
The highway reopened at approximately 1 p.m.
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