BY ROGER SMTIH
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

INEZ — Residents of Murray Road in Inez can now travel safely over a newly completed bridge funded by emergency road assistance from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.

The project, which cost approximately $110,672, was completed with an 80/20 funding match, leaving Martin County responsible for $22,134.

Eric Phelps, Martin County’s facilities manager, noted that once J&M Trucking & Excavating began work, the bridge was completed within a month.

“During construction, residents used an access road through Ray Fields Park, so they never lost access,” Phelps said, adding that this alternative route was crucial in maintaining traffic flow.

The need for the new bridge became urgent earlier in the year after reports of significant structural deterioration. Martin County Judge/Executive Lon Lafferty, who announced the emergency funding in April, explained that the aging bridge—built in the 1980s from parts of the old Kermit toll bridge—had been compromised by corrosion and cracks.

“The piers were literally falling into the creek,” Lafferty said.

Lafferty praised the swift collaboration between the county’s magistrates, Phelps and Deputy Judge/Executive Carolea Mills, who worked together to ensure funding and the project’s completion.