Interstate 75 (I-75) runs from near

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by way of Lexington in the US state of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

. I-75 enters the Cumberland Plateau region from

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, then descends into the Bluegrass region through the Pottsville Escarpment before crossing the Ohio River into

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. I-75 follows along the U.S. Route 25 (US 25) corridor for the entire length of Kentucky.

Route description

I-75 runs roughly parallel to US 25 for its entire length in Kentucky. The freeway enters Kentucky south of

in the Cumberland Plateau, bypassing Corbin and

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before descending into the Bluegrass region near

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through the Pottsville Escarpment. The highway continues north through Richmond en route to Lexington. It meets and then becomes briefly concurrent with I-64 along the north and east sides of Lexington, before leaving the Lexington area northerly and bypassing Georgetown en route to

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

. Just south of

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, the route enters the Cincinnati metropolitan area and becomes concurrent with I-71. The two routes remain concurrent through to

Downtown Cincinnati Downtown Cincinnati is the central business district of Cincinnati, Ohio, as well the economic and symbiotic center of the Cincinnati metropolitan area. It also contains a number of urban neighborhoods in the low land area between the Ohio R ...

. On the north side of Florence, I-75 intersects with the only auxiliary route it has in the state, I-275, a beltway bypass of the greater Cincinnati area. It then passes through

and crosses the Ohio River via the lower level of the Brent Spence Bridge into Ohio.

History

The stretch through

originally included hills and curves steeper than those recommended for Interstate Highway standards. As a result, the northbound descent into Cincinnati, known as Cut-in-the-Hill, was nicknamed " Death Hill". It is a steep descent into the valley of the Ohio River between Kyles Lane and the Brent Spence Bridge leading into Downtown Cincinnati. The hill is known for its high number of automobile accidents. In 2006, the Cut-in-the-Hill averaged over seven times more accidents when compared to similar roadways in Kentucky. At the Cut-in-the-Hill, the northbound road takes a sharp left turn into a steep grade down to the Ohio River—about in . Accidents are usually attributed to a combination of speeding, curvy lanes, poor weather, longer stopping times for trucks traveling downhill, and traffic congestion. The area earned the sobriquet "Death Hill" shortly after I-75 opened in 1962. By 1968, a total of 23 people died in crashes on the hill, so a concrete wall was installed to separate northbound and southbound traffic. The wall helped reduce fatal crashes, but accidents continued, and, in 1977, the hill averaged 583 automobile accidents per year. In 1986, a tractor-trailer lost control, leading to an accident that caused a

Northern Kentucky University Northern Kentucky University is a public university in Highland Heights, Kentucky. It is primarily an undergraduate institution with over 14,000 students; over 12,000 are undergraduate students and nearly 2,000 are graduate students. Northern K ...

student to burn to death in his car. As a result, Governor Martha Layne Collins banned most northbound tractor-trailer traffic from the hill. From 1989 until 1994, $50 million (equivalent to $ in ) in reconstruction was spent to straighten the hill's S-curve and add a fourth lane for southbound traffic, and, in 1995, the truck ban was lifted. Also as part of the reconstruction, ramps were added at Pike Street to give complete access, while an interchange with Jefferson and Euclid avenues was obliterated. In 2006, the hill and the Brent Spence Bridge saw 151 crashes in the northbound direction and 121 crashes in the southbound direction, totaling 272 in all. To help reduce the number of accidents, a flashing "Steep Grade" sign was installed and a

Kentucky State Police The Kentucky State Police (KSP) is a department of the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, and the official State Police force of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, responsible for statewide law enforcement. The department was founded in 194 ...

trooper was assigned to patrol just the Cut-in-the-Hill. Additionally, eight radar speed signs were installed in 2007 to remind motorists to drive a safer speed. The Cut-in-the-Hill was originally designed to carry up to 80,000 vehicles per day, but, in 2006, it carried 155,000 daily. Kentucky officials are reportedly working to raise more than $2 billion to replace the section of highway, but, , no construction is planned.

Exit list

Notes

References

External links

* {{3di, 75 Kentucky 75 0075 Transportation in Whitley County, Kentucky Transportation in Laurel County, Kentucky Transportation in Rockcastle County, Kentucky Transportation in Madison County, Kentucky Transportation in Scott County, Kentucky Transportation in Grant County, Kentucky Transportation in Kenton County, Kentucky Transportation in Boone County, Kentucky