Closure map for Interstate 65 closure in Louisville. KYTC graphic
STAFF REPORT
Glasgow News 1
Interstate 65 will close June 1 between Interstate 264 (Watterston Expressway) and Jefferson Street, creating a two-month traffic challenge.
The stretch of highway is three lanes in each direction, carrying about 125,000 cars each day: local commuters going downtown to work, eat or see a show mixed with regional traffic passing through town. A portion of the southbound stretch — between University Boulevard and the Watterson Expressway — is set to reopen July 1. But traffic in both directions isn’t scheduled to reopen until Aug. 1. At that point, two lanes will be back open in each direction until the expected full reopening in late 2027.
Here’s what KYTC encourages drivers to do:
Northbound I-65 drivers staying in Kentucky:
Detour to westbound I-264, then take eastbound I-64
Northbound I-65 drivers traveling to Indiana:
Detour to westbound I-264, take westbound I-64 and the Sherman Minton Bridge to cross the Ohio River, then use eastbound I-265 to rejoin I-65
Southbound I-65 drivers staying in Kentucky:
Detour to westbound I-64, then take eastbound I-264
Southbound I-65 drivers traveling from Indiana:
Take southbound I-65 and the Kennedy Bridge to cross the Ohio River, detour to westbound I-64, then take eastbound I-264 to rejoin I-65
Officials with the I-65 Central Corridor project said the closure is being done all at once to save “at least a year of additional restrictions and construction delays.”
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