'Broadway All the Way' plan looks to improve Broadway corridor through public meeting

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The city of Louisville continues to seek public input on its quest to make Broadway safer for cars and pedestrians.

With heavy pedestrian traffic and thousands of vehicles, Broadway is considered one of the most dangerous streets in the city, and Tuesday night, community members had the opportunity to provide improvement ideas.

The "Broadway All the Way" plan looks to make the road safer from Shawnee Park to Baxter Avenue and includes bringing new businesses to the area.

The developer picked to help redesign Broadway said he hopes to bring back some of what the road used to be.

"Historically, I remember traveling along Broadway when I was a little kid, it was one of those really impactful things," said Mike Sewell, the co-owner of Gresham Smith. "Now, when you look at it, there's a lot of vacant properties, lots of missed opportunities, and it's about realizing that ... and coming up with realistic approaches to directly combat those things."

Broadway runs from Shawnee Park in west Louisville to Cave Hill Cemetery in the Highlands. It's home to TARC's busiest bus routes and a connection point to public services. It's also one of Louisville's deadliest streets. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Second Street and Broadway was deemed the most dangerous intersection in Kentucky, with 53 accidents reported between Jan. 1 through Dec. 5.

City officials began crafting the plan and soliciting proposals for ideas in November 2018.

A final plan is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. After that, the city plans to apply for federal and state construction grants.