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Russell Viaduct

The Russell Viaduct carries KY Route 244 over the CSX Railroad in Russell, Kentucky.



History

The Russell Viaduct was constructed in 1937-38 2 to replace an at-grade crossing and carry US Route 23 over the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway. The alignment, which snaked through narrow city streets and an underpass, was bypassed with a four-lane alignment in 1957. 1 KY Route 244 was re-designed over the viaduct.

Russell Viaduct Layout
This is a view of the Russell Viaduct alignment from 1937, showing the bridge’s proposed alignment and the at-grade intersection it removed.

Planning to either replace or rehabilitate the then-72-year-old Russell Viaduct began in 2010, with consultants, local officials, and the public weighing in on alternatives. 3 Following a public meeting in 2012, 4 which unveiled alternatives for the project, it was decided to replace the crossing to realign the eastern terminus with a rebuilt US Route 23 and KY Route 750 intersection and avoid the complicated intersection that existed with the Oakley Clark Collins Memorial Bridge. 3

A low-bid contract of $20.6 million was awarded to Triton Construction in March 2020, 4 and construction of the new Russell Viaduct began on May 4. 3 A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for the new $24 million Russell Viaduct on November 3, 2021, and opened to traffic on November 19. 5


Gallery


Details

  • State: Kentucky
  • Route: KY Route 244
  • Status: Active (Automobile)
  • Type: Girder or Beam
  • Total Length: 1,095 feet
  • Main Span Length: 80 feet
  • Spans:
  • Deck Width: 32 feet
  • Roadway Width: 26 feet
  • Height of Structure: 0
  • Above Vertical Clearance: 0
  • Navigational Clearance:


Sources

  1. Ashland-Portsmouth (Russell By-Pass) Road.” Project Archives, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, 1957.
  2. US -23 (Grade, Drain, and Surface).” Project Archives, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, 1937.
  3. “Russell to get new bridge.” Ironton Tribune, 22 Apr. 2020.
  4. Blair, Allen. “Russell Viaduct Project.” Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.
  5. Romans, Charles. “Ribbon cutting on flyover bridge.” Daily Independent, 3 Nov. 2021.

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