6-mile stretch of I-64 West, near Cochran Tunnels, to close for two weeks starting Friday

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will close all westbound lanes of Interstate 64 this weekend from the Watterson Expressway to Story Avenue near the Cochran Tunnels.

Starting at 8 p.m. Friday, June 2, the 6-mile stretch of road will close for two weeks.

The closure starts from the Interstate 264 interchange to Story Avenue. Traffic will be diverted from I-64 West to the I-264 East or West ramps. The ramps from I-264 East and West to I-64 West will also be closed. The I-64 West on-ramp from Story Avenue will remain open.

Drivers can also take Brownsboro Road, Shelbyville Road, or Bardstown Road.

Signs and detour routes will be put in place. The suggested detour, depending on a person's destination, is I-264 East to Interstate 71 South, then reconnecting to I-64 West.

KYTC said crews will be resurfacing the road and doing work through the Cochran Tunnel, such as replacing guardrails and repaving. The agency said the work "will extend the life of the interstate and improve driver comfort on the roadway."

The promised improvements are welcomed from regular drivers of I-64, but they're dreading the closure in the meantime.

"You have so much traffic going in that direction," said Danielle Purcell, who often drives I-64. "Trying to figure out different ways to go, you are just going to clog up everything else, too."

Patrick Hawkins, who runs a Louisville lawn and landscaping company, said he will have to re-route nearly 20 trucks a day and fears the financial effect this could have on his business.

"It's gonna be a rough summer," he said. "It adds a lot more cost to mileage especially, with the fuel costs the way it is today."

The road is scheduled to reopen by 6 a.m. Friday, June 16, which is also the day the eastbound lanes will close in the same area for another two weeks for the same work.

KYTC said the last rehabilitation project of the highway was finished in 2001.

For more information about the project, and other ongoing projects across the city, click here.