FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 23, 2003
Contact: Mark Pfeiffer,
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet
(502) 564-4890

Governor Patton Dedicates AA Highway to former Governor John Y. Brown, Jr. 

FRANKFORT, Ky. - (July 23, 2003) - Governor Paul Patton and Transportation Cabinet Secretary James C. Codell, III along with other state and local dignitaries met today in Alexandria to dedicate the AA Highway to John Y. Brown, Jr.  

“Governor Brown had the foresight many years ago to propose this highway in order to attract economic development ventures to this area of the Commonwealth,” Patton said. “It’s only fitting that today we officially announce that this roadway will bear his name.” 

In the early 1980’s, the Commonwealth was in a recession. Something major had to be done to pull Kentuckians out of this economic slump. One item on Governor Brown’s list of things to do was to increase tourism and bring businesses to Northern Kentucky to help the area’s economy. The method used to obtain these objectives was the construction of a road that would connect rural and urban areas throughout the northern part of the state, hence the AA Highway. 

“Without Governor Brown’s leadership, this project would not have been done,” Codell said. “That is why, as a token of our appreciation, we are naming this road in his honor.” 

Governor Brown guided the proposed AA Highway project through the Legislature and was adamant about getting the project going. The road project began in 1983 and cost approximately $236.5 million to complete. The AA Highway (KY 9 and KY 10) was so named because the original route was to run from Ashland to Alexandria. Today, KY 9 starts in Carter County and ends in Campbell County and is approximately 109 miles long. KY 10 starts in Lewis County and ends in Greenup County and is approximately 25 miles long.

###