LEXINGTON, Ky. (July 7, 2021) – Today in Fayette County, Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman presented a ceremonial check for $40,000 from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) to represent funding to improve traffic and pedestrian safety on roadways by two school campuses – Liberty Elementary School and Lexington Universal Academy.
In April, Gov. Beshear announced plans to invest $23 million to improve highway safety near schools, protecting students, educators and families. KYTC is using state funding allocated in the 2020 Highway Plan to complete 70 school safety improvement projects in 44 counties across the state. To see the full list of projects, click here.
“As a teacher and as a school parent, the safety of our Kentucky schoolchildren is never out of my thoughts,” Lt. Gov. Coleman said. “This ceremonial check represents more than new equipment. It represents a high priority of Gov. Beshear and all of us on Team Kentucky – making streets and roads safer around our schools.”
Liberty Elementary and Lexington Universal Academy are located on two of the busiest routes in Lexington – Liberty Road and Nicholasville Road (U.S. 27), respectively.
At Lexington Universal, an overhead school flasher will be installed on Nicholasville Road to provide additional warning to vehicles that they are approaching the school entrance. When the lights are flashing, the speed limit is 45 mph.
At Liberty Elementary, KYTC engineers will review school zone devices already in use to determine how they can be enhanced during a planned reconstruction of Liberty Road.
The plan is to widen a section of Liberty Road to five lanes – four through-lanes and a center turn lane – with a sidewalk on one side of the road and a shared use path on the other. Liberty Road currently is two lanes without sidewalks in the planned project area.
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