LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will close the outer loop of New Circle Road overnight Thursday to Friday for bridge construction work as part of the ongoing New Circle Road widening project, according to a press release from KYTC District 7.

Beginning at 7 p.m. Thursday, the right lane of the outer loop will close between Georgetown Road and Leestown Road. At 10 p.m., all remaining lanes will shut down completely. Both lanes are scheduled to reopen by 5 a.m. Friday morning. The closure is necessary to pour the bridge deck on phase two of the bridge carrying New Circle Road over the railroad between Leestown Road and Georgetown Road.

Drivers should exit onto Georgetown Road heading north and turn left onto Citation Boulevard. Traffic can then access Leestown Road and re-enter New Circle Road there. The cabinet warned that all work and closures are tentative and subject to change based on weather conditions and other unforeseen circumstances.

The New Circle Road widening project, part of the broader Driving Lexington Progress initiative, is scheduled for completion in summer 2027. When finished, the project will increase capacity and operation of New Circle Road and the Leestown interchange while improving safety and travel times in the rapidly growing area. The Leestown interchange will be converted to a double crossover diamond configuration, a design proven to reduce crashes.

For real-time traffic updates, the cabinet recommends using GoKY or Waze to navigate around construction zones.