MURRAY – Two Calloway County bridge replacement projects that the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said would start Monday didn’t unfold the same way: work began as scheduled on Van Cleave Road, but a planned closure on Charley Miller Road was postponed, a delay county officials said they only learned about after the contractor failed to show up.
Charley Miller Road
The planned closure of Charley Miller Road between Jackson Road and Kelly Road has been postponed until late January or early February, KYTC advised in a late-Monday-afternoon press release.
The contractor responsible for constructing the new bridge over Wades Creek, Lexington-based company Jave, LLC, initially planned to begin the project Monday, according to a KYTC press release sent last week. At the time, the cabinet advised it anticipated the project would be completed sometime in April, weather permitting.
The $495,000 bridge-replacement project is part of the City County Bridge Improvement Program (CCBIP), which was established by the state legislature in 2024 through two $25 million allocations in fiscal years 2025 and 2026 to help counties and cities repair, replace or preserve bridges. FY25 funds were disbursed in three phases between February and June, and the first awards of the FY26 grant cycle were announced in October. In total, Calloway County has received $2,385,000 from the program, funding five projects.
In a Facebook post Monday, Calloway County Judge-Executive Kenny Imes advised constituents that KYTC, without giving prior notice to the county, delayed the project until further notice, and he apologized for the inconvenience.
He told The Sentinel Tuesday that the county road department never set up road closure signs because, when they arrived at the site Monday morning, there was no sign of the contractor. KYTC did not inform the county that the project was being delayed until later that afternoon.
The cabinet advised it will provide advance notice prior to the rescheduled start date.
Van Cleave Road
Imes confirmed that, to the east, Jim Smith Contracting began the task of replacing the bridge over the East Fork Clarks River on Van Cleave Road Monday, as expected. That closure is located northeast of KY 80 at mile point 2.3.
The project, which bears a $646,520 price tag, is included in the state’s six-year highway plan. According to KYTC, approximately 478 vehicles travel on this section of Van Cleave Road in an average day.
Construction is expected to be completed by early May, weather permitting. In the meantime, motorists are asked to self-detour.
Related coverage:
- Calloway receives $935,000 from CCBIP for bridge replacement
- Calloway County among 22 local bridge projects awarded in second round of CCBIP funding
- Calloway County receives grant to replace bridge on Charley Miller Road
- Calloway County awarded $550,000 for bridge replacement
- County installs new bridge on Old Salem Road
- Old Salem Road bridge opens to the public
