U.S. Route 68 (US 68) is a United States highway that runs for from northwest

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 ...

Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...

. The highway's western terminus is at US 62 in Reidland, Kentucky. Its present northern terminus is at Interstate 75 in Findlay, Ohio, though the route once extended as far north as

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Orur ...

. US 68 intersects with US 62 three times during its route.

Route description

US 68 is signed east–west in

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 ...

, while in

it is signed north–south.

Kentucky

U.S. Route 68 is designated as a "Scenic Highway" throughout Kentucky. US 68 passes near or through Reidland, Aurora, Cadiz,

Hopkinsville Hopkinsville is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Christian County, Kentucky, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 31,577. History Early years The area of present-day Hopkinsville was initially claimed in 1796 b ...

, Elkton, Russellville,

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

, Bowling Green,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Greensburg, Campbellsville,

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

, Perryville, Harrodsburg, Lexington,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, and Maysville. The majority of the route winds through forested, hilly terrain. US 68 is Broadway through downtown Lexington, and it is Harrodsburg Road before it leaves Lexington. The route passes several

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

battle sites. The Jefferson Davis State Historic Site is located along the highway, approximately east of Hopkinsville at the small town of Fairview. The

Battle of Tebbs Bend The Battle of Tebbs' Bend (or Tebbs Bend or Green River) was fought on July 4, 1863, near the Green River in Taylor County, Kentucky during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War. Despite being badly outnumbered, elements of the Union army thw ...

Historic Civil War Site is located near Campbellsville and the

Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site is a park near Perryville in Boyle County, Kentucky. The park continues to expand with purchases of parcels by the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves' Kentucky Heritage Land Conservation Fund and the ...

is outside Perryville. There is an annual yard sale, held along the highway for four days in early summer. The sections of the highway through Campbellsville and Lebanon are slated for expansion to begin in 2008. The long-term goal is to widen and make safer the entire US 68 corridor through Kentucky as part of the Heartland Parkway project. Sections in Kentucky have been improved in recent years. The

Paris Pike Paris Pike is the local name for the 14 mile (23 km) stretch of U.S. Routes 27/ 68 between Paris and Lexington, Kentucky. For years, this stretch of road had only two side-by-side lanes and no emergency breakdown lane. Given the large amo ...

was completed in 2003. Work is currently in progress to make US 68 four lanes through Land Between the Lakes. This was accelerated, following a devastating collision of the cargo vessel MV ''Delta Mariner'' with

Eggner Ferry Bridge Eggner Ferry Bridge, also known as Eggner's Ferry Bridge, is a four-lane bridge in Trigg and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The current through-arch bridge opened to traffic on April 7, 2016, replacing a two-lane bowstring truss ...

in January 2012.

Ohio

US 68 takes a south–north route throughout Ohio, roughly paralleling Interstate 75 but covering counties one tier to the east of those counties covered by I-75. US 68 begins at the

William H. Harsha Bridge The William H. Harsha bridge is a cable-stayed bridge carrying U.S. Route 62 and U.S. Route 68 that connects Maysville, Kentucky, and Aberdeen, Ohio, over the Ohio River. It is named for Bill Harsha, William Harsha, who represented the Ohio porti ...

over 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 duplexes with

U.S. Route 52 U.S. Route 52 (US 52) is a major United States highway in the central United States that extends from the northern to southeastern region of the United States. Contrary to most other even-numbered U.S. Highways, US 52 primarily follows ...

for 5.6 miles while traveling on the north bank of the river. The highways separate at

Ripley Ripley may refer to: People and characters * Ripley (name) * ''Ripley'', the test mannequin aboard the first International Space Station space station Dragon 2 space test flight Crew Dragon Demo-1 * Ellen Ripley, a fictional character from the Ali ...

, at which point US 68 heads north as a generally rural two-lane highway, passing through or bypassing communities such as Georgetown, Mount Orab, Fayetteville, Wilmington, Xenia, and Yellow Springs. Shortly before reaching Interstate 70, it becomes a four-lane expressway, bypassing

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

before transitioning back to a rural two-lane road as it approaches

Urbana __NOTOC__ Urbana can refer to: Places Italy *Urbana, Italy United States *Urbana, Illinois **Urbana (conference), a Christian conference formerly held in Urbana, Illinois *Urbana, Indiana * Urbana, Iowa *Urbana, Kansas * Urbana, Maryland *Urbana, ...

. As it continues north, US 68 passes through West Liberty, Bellefontaine,

Kenton Kenton may refer to: Places Canada *Kenton, Manitoba South Africa *Kenton-on-Sea United Kingdom *Kenton, Devon *Kenton, London **Kenton station, Kenton Road, Kenton, London *Kenton, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear *Kenton, Suffolk **Kenton ra ...

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Arlington on its way north to its terminus at an interchange with Interstate 75 outside Findlay. In total, US 68 traverses 179.1 miles within Ohio.

History

From 1926 until the late 1940s, in terms of the routing between Bowling Green and Perryville, US 68 went westward through

Springfield, Kentucky Springfield is a List of cities in Kentucky, home rule-class city in and county seat of Washington County, Kentucky, Washington County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,846 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. History Spring ...

Bardstown Bardstown is a home rule-class city in Nelson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 11,700 in the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Nelson County. Bardstown is named for the pioneering Bard brothers. David Bard obtained a l ...

, and followed

U.S. Route 31E U.S. Route 31E (US 31E) is the easternmost of two parallel routes for U.S. Highway 31 from Nashville, Tennessee, to Louisville, Kentucky. (At one time, it split with U.S. Highway 31W at Sellersburg, Indiana, north of Louisville.) Route d ...

southward to near Horse Cave. US 68 then followed the current KY 218 (Charlie Moran Highway) westward into Horse Cave, and then joined

U.S. Route 31W U.S. Route 31W (US 31W) is the westernmost of two parallel routes for U.S. Route 31 from Nashville, Tennessee to Louisville, Kentucky. At one time, it split with U.S. Route 31E at Sellersburg, Indiana, crossing into nearby Louisville via the Ke ...

from there through Cave City to Bowling Green. US 68 moved to its current routing from Bowling Green to Perryville around 1948–49. US 68 previously ran to

Toledo, Ohio Toledo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lucas County, Ohio, United States. A major Midwestern United States port city, Toledo is the fourth-most populous city in the state of Ohio, after Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati, and according ...

, terminating at the west approach to the Anthony Wayne Bridge south of downtown, but the Toledo-Findlay segment was decommissioned in the 1950s. It also passed through

Springfield, Ohio Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County, Ohio, Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River (Ohio), Mad River, Buck Creek, and Beaver Creek, approxim ...

prior to its realignment onto a four-lane bypass of that city. Two spans of the US 68/

KY 80 Kentucky Route 80 (KY 80) is a state highway in the southern part of the U.S. state of Kentucky. The route originates on the state's western border at Columbus in Hickman County and stretches across the southern portion of the state, ...

over Kentucky Lake collapsed after being struck by a cargo ship on January 26, 2012. The bridge reopened to traffic on May 25, 2012. That bridge was replaced by a new four-lane bridge a few years afterwards.

Future

In Clark County, Ohio, there is an almost full-access interchange between controlled-access US 68 and US 40/ SR 4, which is itself a controlled-access highway until approximately 0.3-mile west of the US 68 interchange. One exit ramp from US 68 ends on Upper Valley Pike, rather than on US 40/SR 4; another entrance ramp includes two-way traffic and an

at-grade At-grade may refer to: * At-grade intersection, a crossing between roads on the same level * Road junction *Level crossing, where a road or path crosses a railway on the same level * Diamond crossing, where two railway tracks cross * At-grade railwa ...

entrance to a

retirement community A retirement community is a residential community or housing complex designed for older adults who are generally able to care for themselves; however, assistance from home care agencies is allowed in some communities, and activities and socializ ...

. On US 40/SR 4 between the controlled-access portion and US 68, there are an at-grade intersection at Upper Valley Pike, other street and driveway breaks in access control and a steep grade on the eastbound approach toward Upper Valley Pike. In September 2013, the Clark County-Springfield Transportation Coordinating Committee (TCC) ranked the US 40/SR 4/Upper Valley Pike intersection as the most hazardous in the county, based on 2010-2012 crash data. Because the road design over the years had played a significant factor in the high number of crashes in the area, the TCC conducted a study; in February 2006 it recommended reconfiguring the US 68 interchange and altering nearby traffic patterns. The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) the same year approved $5 million to fund the project. However, the TCC soon rejected ODOT's money, concluding that even its recommended fix would not be enough to solve the area road network's underlying problems. Instead, the TCC is making small changes, such as improving traffic signal timing and adding signs. ODOT, for its part, is working on reducing the number of driveways near the US 40/SR 4/Upper Valley Pike intersection and on upgrading traffic signals. In

Xenia Township, Greene County, Ohio Xenia Township is one of the twelve townships of Greene County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,537. Geography Located at the center of the county, it borders the following townships: * Miami Township - north * C ...

, north of Xenia, ODOT plans to convert the intersection with SR 235, the state route's southern terminus, to a

roundabout A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford En ...

. As of summer 2020, construction is expected to begin in spring 2023 and to be completed that fall, with an estimated cost of $2 million.

Major intersections

Related routes

U.S. Route 168 U.S. Route 150 (US 150) is a 571-mile (919 km) long northwest-southeast United States highway, signed as east–west. It runs from U.S. Route 6 outside of Moline, Illinois to U.S. Route 25 in Kentucky, U.S. Route 25 in Mount Vernon, Kentu ...

Special routes of U.S. Route 68 Several special routes of U.S. Route 68 exist from Kentucky to Ohio. In order from west to east in Kentucky, and south to north in Ohio, these special routes are listed from the beginning of U.S. Route 68 (US 68) to the end. Cadiz business loo ...

References

External links

Endpoints of U.S. Highway 68
{{US Highways 68 68 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 0068 Transportation in Brown County, Ohio Transportation in Clinton County, Ohio Transportation in Greene County, Ohio Transportation in Clark County, Ohio Transportation in Champaign County, Ohio Transportation in Logan County, Ohio Transportation in Hardin County, Ohio Transportation in Hancock County, Ohio 68