U.S. Route 23 (US 23) is a United States Numbered Highway in the 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 Virginia to ...

. It travels from the

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

state line near

Jenkins Jenkins may refer to: People * Jenkins (name), history of the surname * List of people with surname Jenkins * The Jenkins, country music group Places United States *Jenkins, Illinois *Jenkins, Kentucky *Jenkins, Minnesota *Jenkins, Missouri *Je ...

to the

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

state line west of South Shore via Jenkins, Pikeville, Coal Run Village, Prestonsburg, Paintsville, Louisa, Catlettsburg, Ashland,

Russell Russell may refer to: People * Russell (given name) * Russell (surname) * Lady Russell (disambiguation) * Lord Russell (disambiguation) Places Australia *Russell, Australian Capital Territory *Russell Island, Queensland (disambiguation) **Ru ...

Flatwoods Flatwoods, pineywoods, pine savannas and longleaf pine-wiregrass ecosystem are terms that refer to an ecological community in the southeastern coastal plain of North America. Flatwoods are an ecosystem maintained by wildfire or prescribed fire an ...

, Raceland, Wurtland, Greenup, and South Shore.

Route description

US 23 enters Kentucky at the Virginia state line southeast of

. After a little over a mile, it intersects US 119 at a partial interchange on the Jenkins city line, and US 119 runs concurrently with US 23. The highway then head in a northeasterly direction, bypassing Jenkins. The two then meet US 460 at another partial interchange along the

Levisa Fork The Levisa Fork (also known as the Levisa Fork River or the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River) is a tributary of the Big Sandy River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe Nati ...

in extreme southern Pikeville, and US 460 also joins the concurrency. The highway bypasses Pikeville along the Pikeville Cut-Through before US 119 splits off to the east. US 23/US 460 begins running northeast through Coal Run Village and around both Prestonsburg and Paintsville, where US 460 splits off to the west northwest of Paintsville. US 23 then begins running northeastward, before easing into a northerly direction, bypassing Louisa, after which it begins paralleling the Big Sandy River. The route intersects

Interstate 64 Interstate 64 (I-64) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Eastern United States. Its western terminus is at I-70, US Route 40 (US 40), and US 61 in Wentzville, Missouri. Its eastern terminus is at an interchange w ...

(I-64) next to the

Catlettsburg Refinery The Catlettsburg Refinery is an American oil refinery. It is located in northeastern Kentucky, at the intersection of Interstate 64 and U.S. Route 23 in Catlettsburg, Kentucky near the cities of Ashland, Kentucky and Huntington, West Virginia. Th ...

before entering the town of Catlettsburg, where it begins a concurrency with US 60. The highway continues north before curving to the northwest to enter Ashland, where US 60 splits off. After Ashland, US 23 continues to run northwestward, paralleling the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

, and running through or around the towns of

, Raceland, Wurtland, and Greenup. After Greenup, it switches to a more northward direction in parallel with the Ohio River before making a sharp change to the west, after which it enters South Shore. Just west of South Shore, US 23 meets the eastern terminus of the eastern segment of

Kentucky Route 8 Kentucky Route 8 is a east–west state highway divided into two distinct segments across northern Kentucky. The western terminus of the route is at KY 237 near Francisville. The eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 23 in South Portsmouth. ...

(HY 8), where it turns north and crosses into Portsmouth, Ohio, via the

U.S. Grant Bridge The U.S. Grant Bridge is the name of the two bridges that carry and have carried traffic on U.S. Route 23 between Portsmouth, Ohio and South Portsmouth, Kentucky (just west of the city of South Shore) across the Ohio River in the United States. ...

across the Ohio River.

Major intersections

References

External links

{{state detail page browse, type=US, route=23, state=Kentucky, statebefore=Virginia, stateafter=Ohio Kentucky 23 U.S. Route 23 in Kentucky Transportation in Letcher County, Kentucky Transportation in Pike County, Kentucky Transportation in Floyd County, Kentucky Transportation in Johnson County, Kentucky Transportation in Lawrence County, Kentucky Transportation in Boyd County, Kentucky Transportation in Greenup County, Kentucky

Route description

Major intersections

See also

References

External links