HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – Deneatra Henderson, Chief Engineer for KYTC District 2 addressed the Christian County Fiscal Court about the current conditions of the roads, also tackling questions about comparisons to nearby Todd County during the Jan. 29 meeting.
“There are real concerns about the conditions in Christian County and Hopkinsville, I understand that,” said Henderson. “Here is what I want to make clear, the differences in the road conditions are not a reflection of differences in effort, funding, or priority.”
Christian County residents have been outspoken on social media and to local officials about how roads in Todd County have been cleared, while Christian County roads are still hazardous five days after multiple inches of snow and ice came through the region. Henderson explained the process and outlined setbacks that impacted operations in Christian County.
Judge Executive Jerry Gilliam emphasized that state and county road crews are separate entities and are responsible for different roadways. He said funding was not an issue with the county, and as of Jan. 29, all county roads have been plowed at least once.
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Todd vs Christian County roads during snow
Henderson told magistrates that C-Routes in Christian County were pretreated five days in advance, which had to be redone due to rain. Todd County, which is under the jurisdiction for KYTC District 3, has around 448 lane miles that require plowing and treatment. However, Christian County has 12,000 lane miles, plus the larger population resulted in more traffic flow which caused the snow to compact.
Henderson also acknowledged that mechanical issues took two integral plows off the road for Christian County. One truck had water in the diesel tank, and another had unforeseen issues with hydraulics. Both counties also prioritized clearing different routes, with Christian County crews focused on ensuring I-24 and I-169 were clear.
“Each county has their own priorities. During the snow event, while it’s actively snowing, in order for us to not lose I-24, they just have to keep making rounds,” said Henderson
She debunked a rumor that crews were incentivized to use less salt on the roads in order to save money, saying that all 2,000 tons of salt that were stored in Christian County was used, with more on the way. On top of this, 13,000 gallons of magnesium chloride was used to pretreat roads and help salt stick.
Next steps a week after winter storm
With multiple inches of snow and ice still on some state and county roads, crews will continue to work to clear lower priority routes. Gilliam assured residents that if any damage is done by plows, such as damaging a mailbox, it will be repaired.
Randy Graham with Christian County Emergency Management added that there are plans in place to provide access to ambulances and other emergency services if the need arises in an area that is not plowed.
Additional road crews from neighboring counties have been called in to assist, equipped with brine blend that aims to help the ice and snow melt faster.
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