The Dixie Fix Plan (Dixie Highway Corridor Access Management Redevelopment Plan) is a long range planning approach to relieve congestion problems and provide better access to Dixie Highway. It was conducted to identify transportation planning and design solutions to address Dixie Highway’s informal status as the most heavily traveled and congested arterial in Kenton County.

Several factors are blamed for Dixie’s transportation problems including forty-four signalized intersections and scores of curb cuts along the eight-mile corridor that permit continuous, full vehicular access. Dixie provides direct access to a variety of business and institutional facilities for nine cities in Kenton County and one city in Boone County. In addition, it serves as a connector for personal, commuter, and commercial traffic on a local and regional basis. Due to its parallel alignment and close proximity to I-71/75, Dixie Highway is commonly used as an alternate route during interstate incidents or during peak hour interstate congestion. 44 traffic signals and over 400 access points (driveways), combined with narrow four-lane segments that lack turn lanes, contributes to travel delays and high accident rates.

As an aging corridor with increased traffic demands, it is necessary to pursue opportunities for improving safety, travel efficiency, and quality of life along Dixie Highway. The Dixie Fix Plan for access management provides a collaborative and proactive approach for local, county and state governments, organizations, and citizens to identify problem areas. With its completion, The Dixie Fix Plan proposes solutions for achieving these goals.

The goals of The Dixie Fix Plan were to:

• Improve safety
• Improve mobility
• Maintain reasonable and adequate access to Dixie Highway properties
• Foster economic development
• Increase environmental stewardship through development of multi-modal options and site design standards
• Improve aesthetics

Operational improvements can mitigate Dixie Highway’s problems, but any significant improvement must involve access management. Access management is the process that provides access to land development while simultaneously preserving the flow of traffic on the surrounding road system in terms of safety, capacity and speed. To succeed, access management would have to be implemented systematically through the coordinated effort and persistent commitment of local governments in the corridor.

The Plan has two major components: (1) a prioritized list of 36 projects taken from a total of 168 short- and long-term site specific access management recommendations and (2) each chapter outlines different, yet critical guidelines that serve as implementation standards such as future right-of-way widths, transit stop improvements, expanded bicycle and pedestrian accommodations, and increased streetscape/design measures.

In addition to these recommended improvements, The Dixie Fix Plan provides a draft Ordinance, draft Memorandum of Understanding, and the discussion of numerous potential funding sources as references for use in advancing immediate implementation.

The Dixie Fix Plan, financed cooperatively by the Federal Highway Administration, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, and units of local and county government in the OKI region, began in August 2005 and was concluded on June 30, 2006.

The project was administered by OKI in partnership with the Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission (NKAPC). The agencies’ efforts were guided by an Oversight Team that included the Cities of Florence, Elsmere, Erlanger, Edgewood, Crestview Hills, Lakeside Park, Fort Mitchell, Fort Wright, Park Hills, and Covington, Boone and Kenton Counties Fiscal Courts, the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky (TANK), Boone County Planning Commission, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, the Catholic Diocese of Covington, NKAPC, and OKI. This 19-member stakeholder group provided additional input and recommendation approvals to the plan. Monthly Oversight Team meetings were held. Seven local visioning sessions and one comprehensive public open house were also held at key points during the planning process.

The Dixie Fix Plan was been approved by the Plan’s Oversight Team on June 30, 2006 and adopted by OKI’s Executive Committee on August 10, 2006. The Plan was also presented to both the Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission and Boone County Planning Commission for adoption. The final step was local adoption by each of the 10 Dixie Highway municipalities.

Email comments or questions to Ms. Robyn Bancroft or call OKI at (513) 619-7662.