Bert T. Combs Mountain Parkway
The Mountain Parkway is one of the most important highways serving eastern Kentucky. It was built in the early 1960s and opened in January 1963 as Kentucky's second toll road, and it provides a modern high-speed link from the Big Sandy Valley section of the mountainous eastern portion of the state to the Bluegrass area. The section from Winchester to Campton is four lanes and is also designated as part of Corridor I in the Appachian Development Highway System; the portion from Campton to Salyersville is two lanes with passing lanes on hills and is designated as part of Corridor R.
The route was originally signed only as the Mountain Parkway. In the late 1970s, the "Bert T. Combs" name was added to honor the governor from the mountains who had the foresight to spearhead construction of this highway. Auxiliary plates were added above the circular Mountain Parkway signs to mark the designation.
Tolls were removed from the four-lane section in 1985, and from the two-lane section in 1986.
Not only is the Mountain Parkway an important connector route, it's a vital link for economic development in the area it serves. It is also a major feeder route, funneling traffic from such cities as Pikeville, Prestonsburg, Paintsville, West Liberty, Hazard, Jackson, Beattyville, Booneville and Irvine toward Lexington and I-75.
A partial exit marks
the westernmost beginning/end of the Mountain Parkway
just east of Winchester. Only traffic eastbound on I-64 can
enter the parkway; westbound traffic must use Exit 96A and
circle back around to I-64
east. Likewise, parkway traffic westbound must enter
I-64
westbound and circle back to eastbound I-64
using Exit 96A.
Mountain Parkway
This exit allows
access to the small Powell County town of Clay City.
Eastbound traffic also uses this exit to KY 15, then KY 82
and KY 89, to reach Irvine. Traffic for KY 1057 must also
use this exit, since Exit 18 is a partial exit and allows no
access from westbound traffic to KY 1057. KY 15 parallels
the parkway from Winchester to Campton. Westbound traffic
can also use KY 11, which intersects KY 15 about a mile
north of this interchange, to reach Mt. Sterling (and
I-64),
Flemingsburg and Maysville.
Irvine
Mt. Sterling
This partial exit
allows access to KY 1057 only from westbound parkway
traffic, and traffic can only enter the parkway eastbound.
Accessible from this exit are several recreational sites in
the Daniel Boone National Forest in Powell and Estill
counties.
KY 213 provides
access to Stanton, the county seat of Powell County, as well
as several recreational areas in the Daniel Boone National
Forest south of the parkway. Northbound KY 213 offers access
to US 460 at Jeffersonville in Montgomery County.
KY 11 is a major
north-south link through east-central Kentucky. It joins KY
15 at Clay City and is multiplexed southbound to Slade,
where it veers south to link the towns of Beattyville,
Booneville, Manchester (and the Daniel Boone Parkway and US
421) and Barbourville (US 25E, a/k/a the Cumberland Gap
Parkway). This exit also provides access to the Red River
Gorge recreational area via KY 77. Since there is no exit
for KY 77, two miles west of Exit 33, traffic bound for the
Gorge must double back on north KY 11 / KY 15. The Junior
Williamson Rest Area, named for a Pike County native who
shined shoes in the State Capitol and who lobbied for its
construction, opened in the late 1980s. It lies just south
of this exit.
Beattyville
Beattyville
For eastbound
traffic, this exit provides further access to the Red River
Gorge via KY 715 north. It also provides an exit for local
traffic. For westbound traffic, this is the primary exit for
Beattyville, as KY 715 intersects KY 11 about five miles
south. KY 715 between the Mountain Parkway and KY 11 is part
of the proposed London-to-Ashland highway which will link
I-75
and I-64.
Most portions of this route are already built or are in the
planning stages; about the only portion not on the books is
the five-mile stretch of KY 715 in Wolfe County. From this
exit, the London-to-Ashland corridor will follow the
Mountain Parkway east to Exit 57.
Rogers
Rogers
This new exit opened
in 1998, and was built primarily to provide access to an
industrial park and commercial development planned for this
interchange. Westbound traffic can also use this exit to
loop back around to follow Exit 43 for KY 15
south.
This partial exit
marks the beginning of Appalachian Corridor R, which follows
the Mountain Parkway eastward. Corridor I follows KY 15
south to US 119 (Corridor F) at Whitesburg. This exit also
marks the end of the four-lane section of the Mountain
Parkway. This exit is for unmarked Spur KY 15. Two miles
south, at Campton, it picks up KY 15 and the route goes
south to Jackson, Hazard (where it intersects KY 80 and the
Daniel Boone Parkway) and Whitesburg. From Whitesburg, US
119 provides easy access to US 23 (Corridor B) at Jenkins
and the route through western Virginia and eastern Tennessee
to Asheville, N.C. This is also the exit to use for
motorists who wish to take KY 191 north to Hazel Green and
from there, KY 203 north to US 460. There is no access
for westbound traffic; motorists wishing to exit at Campton
should either use Exit 46, or continue on to Exit 42 and
double back. Similarly, traffic heading north on Spur KY 15
cannot enter the parkway eastbound.
Hazard
Hindman
Whitesburg
This partial exit
allows westbound traffic to reach Campton. There is no
access for eastbound traffic (although, since the highway
here is an undivided two-lane route, nothing prevents a
motorist from turning left from the eastbound parkway onto
the exit ramp since there are no "No Left Turn" signs
posted).
This exit primarily
serves local traffic. Hazel Green lies a few miles to the
north, but KY 191 is the best route to take to reach this
town.
KY 205 is a through
route linking KY 15 (ARC Corridor I) with US 460. It is
an improved route north to West Liberty, and is part of the
proposed London-to-Ashland corridor which will follow US 460
and KY 7 to Grayson and I-64.
By following KY 205 and then US 460 to West Liberty, traffic
can access Morehead (via KY 519) and Sandy Hook and Grayson
via KY 7. South to KY 15, improvements are also planned to
bring the road to modern standards. KY 191 also provides
access to Hazel Green and several small Morgan County
communities.
West Liberty
Jackson
Local traffic is
served by this exit. Together, KY 191 and KY 134 roughly
parallel the parkway from Campton to Salyersville. There is
no access from the eastbound parkway, but again, since the
road is an undivided two-lane route, daring motorists could
make a left turn at the exit ramp. Similarly, traffic
entering the eastbound parkway could hang a left and head
west.
At this point, KY
134 and the Mountain Parkway are adjacent to each other. In
the late 1980s, the two routes were connected and an
at-grade intersection was created to serve local traffic.
Caution: there are no turning lanes at this intersection, so
eastbound traffic should be on the lookout for stopped
vehicles waiting for oncoming traffic to clear before they
can turn left.
There's no
destination listed at this exit, but KY 30
connects Jackson and Salyersville. A better route to
Jackson, though, is by following the Mountain Parkway
westbound to KY 205, then following KY 205 and KY
15.
This exit directs
eastbound traffic to downtown Salyersville, where KY 7
intersects US 460 and the two routes are then multiplexed to
West Liberty. Southbound KY 7 passes through rural
southeastern Magoffin County, eventually intersecting KY 80
and KY 15.
This intersection
marks the eastern end of the Mountain Parkway. A left turn
onto US 460 west leads into Salyersville. Corridor R
continues east on US 460 and KY 114. KY 114 east heads to
Prestonsburg, and US 23 south /US 460 east (Corridor B)
leads on to Pikeville, Jenkins, US 119 (Corridors F and G)
and on into Virginia, Tennessee and North Carolina. US 460
continues to Paintsville, and from there US 23 north leads
to Louisa, Ashland (I-64),
Greenup, Portsmouth, Ohio and Columbus,
Ohio.
Mountain Parkway
This
page created April 8, 1999
Last modified April 8, 1999
© 1999, H.B. Elkins