Pike County, KY — Three county bridges in Pike County failed routine inspections last week. Two of those bridges are now closed. The Pike County Road Department mitigated the issues with the third so that it could remain open. The inspections were conducted by Highway District 12 officials. On Wednesday, March 20, the Division of Maintenance at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet closed the structure over Caney Creek on Sarah Branham Way off Caney Highway (old US 23). This bridge is accessed off US 23 at the first right turn going south past Penny Road. A second bridge closed on Friday, March 22, is on the Right Fork of Brushy over the Left Fork of Brushy at the end of Ford Mountain Road. The third bridge inspected last week narrowly escaped closure. The bridge at Pigeonroost Road off US 119 over Big Creek had two failed beams out of a total of seven. Because there is no other way in or out of this community, D12 Bridge Engineer Chris Allen and Pike County Road Foreman Fabian Little came up with a plan to keep the bridge open until a replacement can be built. These will be District 12’s fourth, fifth, and sixth bridges either replaced or rehabilitated as part of the Transportation Cabinet’s Bridging Kentucky initiative. The first three were on KY 610 at Virgie, KY 40 at Oil Springs, and the demolition of the bridge on KY 1100 over Little Paint Creek in Floyd County.

                                                                   Caney Creek

                                                                     Right Fork Brushy
                                                                     Pigeonroost