Planned Interstate Highway All the Way Through Kentucky Will Likely Never Exist

For the longest time, the Pennyrile Parkway, the western third of the Western Parkway, and the William Natcher Parkway were an intrinsic park of travelers' lives. Those stretches of blacktop still are; they just have new names. Part of the WK Parkway  became Interstate 69 in 2008. The Pennyrile Parkway from the WK interchange to Henderson became I-69 in 2015. The Natcher Parkway transformed to Interstate 165 in 2019.

Interstate Highways

But what about the other four-lane highways that remain Kentucky parkways? Have any of them been earmarked for a numerical designation. The answer is "yes," but that doesn't mean it will ever happen...that is, in regard to at least one of them.

Interstate 66

Back in 2005, the concept for the conversion of the Cumberland Parkway to the Interstate 66 corridor was born. Kentucky was serious about getting this highway constructed, based on this lengthy and detailed evaluation from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet at the time. Here's an unearthed overview of why it was originally believed that Interstate 66 was the right idea.

Not only would I-66 have traversed the entire Commonwealth, it was also meant to be a Kentucky-to-Kansas connector illustrated by the following map. (Also, it seems someone really wants this project back on the table.)

But I-66 is off the table, despite the presence, years ago, of signs that read "Future I-66 Corridor." I remember seeing them, and so does Justin Wilson who commented on the following post.

Interstate 67

There was also a brief flirtation with an Interstate 67 that would've connected Interstate 65 at Bowling Green, Kentucky to Interstate 69 somewhere in Indiana. The four-lane highway would have used the existing Interstate 165 (it was the Natcher Parkway at the time), the Owensboro bypass, and an upgraded U.S. 231 from Owensboro to Interstate 64. There was even a feasibility study from the Indiana Department of Transportation, but the project was dismissed and never got as close to the "table" as even I-66.

Based on the existence of I-165, I'm gathering spurs are a lot easier than interstate highways because they're usually existing stretches of roads. We have those in Kentucky. Give 'em three-digit numbers, and let's move on.