Clays Ferry Bridge

The Clay's Ferry Bridge is a combination of three former bridges combined into one bridge. It carries Interstate 75 along with US 25 and US 421 across the Kentucky River between Madison and Fayette counties.

History

The Clay's Ferry Bridge replaced an older road bridge of the same name in 1946. The Old Clay's Ferry Bridge is a series of two Warren truss structures constructed in 1869. After the State of Kentucky purchased it, the bridge was made part of the alignment of US 25 in 1929.[1][2] Prior to 1869, service across the Kentucky was provided by ferry.[3]

The first high-level bridge across the Kentucky River was completed in 1946, carrying two lanes of traffic (one northbound, one southbound).[4] It was 280 feet (85 m) above the river level and was the tallest bridge east of the Mississippi after completion,[5] with a total length of 1,736 feet (529 m).[3] In 1963, a twin bridge was completed just south of the existing bridge and traffic ran in two lanes in each direction, with each span made one-way. Plans were announced in 1989 to build a third bridge to span the gap between the two older bridges; it was completed in 1998 and traffic now runs on a single deck in six lanes total (three lanes in each direction) with full shoulders. Each northbound/southbound roadway is 60 feet (18 m) wide, and total traffic over the bridge was 75,000 vehicles per day in 2015.[4]

References
  1. "Old Clays Ferry Bridge". Historic Bridges. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  2. "Clays Ferry Bridge (KY 2328)". bridges and tunnels.com. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  3. "New Clays Ferry bridge nears completion, 1946". Kentucky Photo Archive. 29 July 2018. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  4. "I-75 Clays Ferry bridges". Kentucky Photo Archive. March 6, 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  5. "Clays Ferry bridge, 1944". Kentucky Photo Archive. July 2, 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2018.


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