It’s called a “road diet,” and it looks like it’s coming to a half-mile stretch of Second Street in the vicinity of Holy Name School.
In an effort to make pedestrian crossings for Holy Name students and others safer, state highway officials on Monday announced plans to shrink busy Second Street/Kentucky 351 from four lanes to two driving lanes plus a center left-turn lane between Green Street and Carlisle Street at the foot of the Second Street overpass.
To accomplish that, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said crews will restripe the roadway this Thursday, weather permitting.
That will convert that stretch of Second Street into one 11-foot travel lane in each direction along with the new center turn lane and new four-foot bicycle lanes in each direction, the KYTC said in a news release.
The reconfiguration will maintain approximately eight feet of on-street parking along most of the corridor, it said.
That section of roadway is one of Henderson’s busier thoroughfares, carrying an average of approximately 8,800 vehicles per day as of 2025, according to the online KYTC Traffic County Reporting System.
“The current configuration (of four lanes on this portion of Second Street) is actually designed to accommodate well over 20,000 cars a day,” according to Matt Hughes, spokesman for KYTC District 2 in Madisonville. “The new design is for up to 16,000 cars a day,” or nearly double the current traffic count.
“The corridor includes a school and serves neighborhoods, businesses and other destinations that generate regular pedestrian traffic,” KYTC noted in its news release. “The project is intended to make it easier and safer for people walking to cross the roadway while continuing to accommodate motorists traveling through the area.”
Henderson Mayor Brad Staton provided a measured response to the plan, telling the Hendersonian on Monday, “The way we’re looking at it is, if it will make things safer for the kids, that is something we hold in high regard” while noting that portion of Second Street is a state highway under state, not city, control.
(That roadway is designated as Kentucky 351, a state-maintained highway, from Green Street to the intersection with Kentucky 416 at Hebbardsville, a distance of nearly 13 miles.)
“If it’s just a striping project and the state is in complete control of it, they’re not legally required to tell us about it,” though he first got word about it from KYTC last week, the mayor said. “If the state-level engineers think it’s the best for their road, I’m not going with my initial (skeptical) reaction,” though he acknowledged: “It’s different than what we have, different than what we’re used to.”
Noting that the state expects to restripe that stretch of Second Street in a single day, Staton said, “They can change it back in a day if they get (a negative) community reaction.”
The city posted the KYTC news release to its Facebook page on Monday afternoon, and negative reaction was swift, with one commenter posting, “This is the dumbest thing they could do.”
Staton posted his own comments to the city Facebook feed, declaring that the reconfiguration “was not one the city requested” and that the city learned the details of the project only after receiving the news release Monday.
“My initial reaction when I heard the plan late last week, that had to be firmed up before they made a definite news release today, was not great,” the mayor posted. “I think it’s natural that many of us would react that way to something like this. This is something new and different and unfamiliar and I had tons of questions as I’m sure so many of us do now.”
The city’s Facebook post advised those who “have questions or would like additional information about KYTC’s project, please contact the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, District 2 office at (270) 824-7080,” with Staton noting: “It’s a fast-moving project that’ll most likely be complete by the weekend …”
Legislators, HPD approve
Henderson County’s two state legislators and a city police spokesman on Monday endorsed the state’s plans.
“We’ve been working along with KYTC to come up with a safer crossing for Holy Name and with (the new main city) fire station going in there, this is what KYTC came up with, and we kind of okayed it and said it will be good and make it safer on that stretch of Second Street,” state Sen. Robby Mills said Monday.
“I really think it will keep traffic moving, with a lane going each way without stopping and starting (because) all the left-hand turns will be in the (dedicated turn lane in the) middle of the road.”
Mills’ family owns Nu-Look Cleaners at Second and Ingram streets, in the midst of the planned road reconfiguration. “We’ve (observed) a lot of accidents at Ingram Street” when motorists trying to cross Second Street had collisions after failing to see oncoming traffic, he said. “I think this will help with that.”
“All of the Transportation Cabinet experts I’ve spoken to seem to think this is going to be a way to narrow the driving lanes of traffic to make pedestrian traffic more safe in that area,” state Rep. JT Payne said Monday. “A lot of folks from the East End cross that street (as do) children from Holy Name,” such as when they leave school to attend mass at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church.
Payne said he’s also been told that narrowing that portion of Second Street could provide an option for eventually installing a crosswalk with caution lights, something he’s been told KYTC’s Division of Traffic Safety in Frankfort wouldn’t permit on the current 60-foot-wide, four-lane highway.
In April 2025, representatives of Holy Name School and the Women’s Addiction Recovery Manor (WARM), among others, appeared before the Henderson City Commission to advocate for a pedestrian overpass to be constructed at the intersection of Second and Adams streets to help walkers safely cross over the busy roadway.
Payne said he wasn’t sure if that proposal triggered the upcoming traffic reconfiguration, “but the safety of that crossing has been a conversation for at least a decade — from my conversations with KYTC, that this been a point of concern amongst them and community members for, like I said, at least a decade.”
He said he’s been told that a similar road diet traffic reconfiguration was done in Bowling Green “and it has achieved its purpose and kept traffic moving, slowed traffic down to improve pedestrian safety with a crosswalk with lights. When that did work, I think that was when our KYTC folks … (decided it) could be a solution” for Second Street here.
Details on that Bowling Green project weren’t immediately available.
In a subsequent text message, Payne wrote: “Let the record show… I am 100% supportive of this project if it saves one life, especially a child. I appreciate KYTC for being proactive instead of waiting for something terrible to happen; there have been some close calls already. It costs very little, is research based and has the option for a quick change back, worst-case scenario.”
Sgt. Bill Russell, public information officer for the Henderson Police Department, said HPD learned of the state’s plans from the news release on Monday.
“As far as the traffic, I think it’s a good thing,” Russell said of the planned reconfiguration after discussing it with a senior HPD officer.
“It can be hard for pedestrians to get across four lanes,” he said. Crossing just two lanes, plus the center turn lane, should be easier.
Motorists turning left will be able to use the center turn lane, which will get them out of moving traffic, hopefully reducing rear-end collisions, Russell said.
“Overall, I think it’s a good thing,” he said, though adding: “Big change. Lot of confusion at the beginning.”
Russell said HPD will have a school resource officer “out there (at Holy Name School) at the beginning of school to help with traffic because I know it will be a learning curve.”
“We recently became aware of the state’s planned reconfiguration of Second Street,” Henderson County Schools spokeswoman Megan Mortis said in a prepared statement.
“We will continue to monitor how it impacts traffic, especially once school begins on August 13,” she continued. “As students return, we will make adjustments as needed in collaboration with our local and state partners to help ensure the safest and most efficient traffic flow possible. We ask everyone for patience, especially during the first week of school, and encourage all drivers to slow down, eliminate distractions, and remain alert when traveling through school zones. The safety of our students, staff, and families is our top priority.”
What KYTC says
In its news release, the KYTC said the following:
“One of the primary benefits of the new roadway configuration is improving conditions for pedestrians.
“Instead of crossing four travel lanes, pedestrians will cross one travel lane in each direction with a center turn lane separating opposing traffic. This simplifies the crossing by reducing the number of moving vehicles pedestrians must monitor at one time. The center turn lane also provides a refuge area for pedestrians who are unable to complete the crossing in a single movement.
“The revised layout also improves visibility by reducing lane-changing movements and separating left-turning vehicles from through traffic, making it easier for both drivers and pedestrians to see one another.
“These improvements are especially beneficial along a corridor that experiences regular pedestrian activity associated with nearby schools, neighborhoods and local businesses.”
Concerning motoring traffic, the KYTC release said:
“The center left-turn lane allows motorists preparing to turn into driveways or side streets to move out of the through lane before slowing or stopping. This reduces delays for following traffic and minimizes sudden braking and lane changes.
“Traffic studies indicate the corridor’s traffic volumes can be accommodated with one travel lane in each direction while maintaining efficient vehicle movement.
“Dedicated bicycle lanes provide cyclists with a designated operating space, creating more predictable interactions between bicycles and motor vehicles while preserving existing on-street parking.”
Regarding the process of reconfiguring the traffic lanes, KYTC said the following:
“The project will be completed through pavement restriping and does not require roadway widening, modification or major construction.”
It added:
“The project will primarily consist of restriping the existing pavement and is expected to require only temporary lane closures during the work. Motorists should use caution, watch for crews and equipment, and obey all traffic control devices.
“Work schedules are subject to change due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances.”
Note: This story has been corrected to state that the traffic count on this portion of Second Street is about 8,800 vehicles per day. This story previously put the figure at 14,426 vehicles per day; KYTC spokesman Matt Hughes says that 14,426 figure is for the area around the Second Street roundabouts.
The story has also been updated to includes Hughes’ comments about the traffic capacity of the current and upcoming lane configurations on Second Street.
