UK Campus Area Road Closures Starting April 29
LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 28, 2020) — Several road closures are coming to the University of Kentucky campus area over the next few weeks to accommodate the installation of a new sanitary sewer line.
The first closure will be Bolivar Street between Mill and Upper Streets, beginning Wednesday, April 29. On Monday, May 4, the intersection of Rose Street and Avenue of Champions will be closed for an estimated five days. That work will be immediately followed by block-by-block closures of Avenue of Champions. Starting Thursday, May 7, Upper Street will be closed from Winslow to Bolivar. Winslow will also be closed from Jersey Street to Upper.
“Last fall, we projected that we would not complete the Broadway to Rose Street segment until late October 2020. Exceptional work by the contractors, who continued to work while many of us sheltered in place, along with reduced traffic volumes have moved the timeline up significantly,” said Charlie Martin, director of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government’s Division of Water Quality. “We now expect to be finished by Memorial Day. That’s good news in otherwise challenging times.”
The Bolivar Street closure between Mill and Upper Streets, which will begin April 29, is anticipated to last a week. Bolivar will continue to be one-way from Mill Street to South Broadway. The closure will facilitate removal of the old sewer line and the installation of a new one.
Commuters who normally use Bolivar Street to reach the UK campus area from Oliver Lewis Way and South Broadway can use Cedar Street as a detour to South Upper. Commuters on South Upper wishing to reach South Broadway or Oliver Lewis Way should use Cedar Street.
The intersection of Rose Street and Avenue of Champions will be closed beginning Monday, May 4. The intersection closure is expected to last five days and will allow for the connection of a new sanitary sewer line to an existing manhole. Columbia Gas will also complete work on gas lines in the intersection.
Once work in the intersection is complete, Avenue of Champions will then experience block-by-block, full street closures to complete the sewer pipeline construction between Limestone and Rose that began in early March. The full closure will allow connection of the new sanitary sewer line to other lines coming down Martin Luther King Boulevard and Lexington Avenue and to buildings on the north side of the street. The work on Avenue of Champions is expected to be complete May 15.
During the Rose Street intersection and Avenue of Champions closures, local access to building and driveways will be available. Drivers wishing to access Euclid from Rose Street will need to utilize Rose Lane to Linden Walk. Drivers wishing to access Euclid from Limestone should take Maxwell to Linden Walk while the Rose intersection is closed. After the intersection reopens, drivers may access Euclid via Rose Street. Drivers on Euclid wishing to reach Limestone will be encouraged to take Woodland Avenue to High Street.
The South Upper and Winslow Streets closures are expected to start Thursday, May 7, and take approximately one and a half weeks. These closures will facilitate the replacement of the old sewer pipe with a new line. Commuters on Upper Street can avoid the closure by taking Cedar Street to Mill Street to Bolivar, which will reconnect them to Upper.
Waze will be updated to show the temporary closures to assist motorists navigating the area.
Pedestrians should use the open sidewalks and only cross at crosswalks. Drivers should be extra cautious in construction areas. Slow down and watch for cyclists and pedestrians.
This work continues Lexington’s multi-year project to replace two miles of sanitary sewer line from Oliver Lewis Way to Tates Creek Road, through the University of Kentucky campus and the Euclid business district. The original sanitary sewer is nearly 80 years old and in disrepair, which is why the new sewer line is needed. Construction on the Euclid sewer project began in February of this year.
Visit www.LexingtonKY.gov/EuclidSewer for traffic information and updates about the project.
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