Reviewed by Larry Forman, Attorney
Preston Highway (KY 61) runs from Louisville's south end through Okolona and past the Gene Snyder toward Bullitt County. It's lined with shopping centers, fast-food lots, side streets, bus stops and center-lane turns, and it carries tens of thousands of cars a day. A Preston Highway accident is often a rear-end or left-turn crash at a busy intersection, or a pedestrian hit where the sidewalk runs out. Here's what state and city data say about the road, and how fault is sorted out.
Preston is on Louisville's High Injury Network
Louisville's Vision Zero program maps the streets where the most people are killed or seriously hurt. That High Injury Network is only 5% of the city's non-interstate road miles but accounts for 55% of its fatal and serious-injury crashes. Preston Highway ranks No. 9 on the list, for a 7.5-mile stretch from Cooper Chapel Road and Commerce Crossings north to Hart Avenue. Like most of the network, it's owned by the state (Vision Zero Louisville). See the most dangerous roads in Louisville for the rest of the list.
What the state's Preston Highway study found
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet studied a seven-mile section of KY 61, from Commerce Crossings Drive to Briden Avenue, and released a plan in April 2025 (KYTC Preston Transportation Plan). Its key findings:
| KY 61 Preston Highway (KYTC study) | Finding |
|---|---|
| Daily traffic | 20,500 to 41,000 vehicles |
| Crashes, 2019–2023 | 2,298 |
| Fatal crashes, 2019–2023 | 22 |
| Most common crash types | Rear-end and angle collisions |
| High-crash intersections | Outer Loop, Fern Valley Road, Commerce Crossings Drive |
The study also found "significant sidewalk gaps and limited crosswalks" and intersections with outdated designs. It recommended sidewalks along the whole corridor, a shared-use path, transit improvements, better signals and lighting, and access management such as raised medians. Money has been set aside for design work, but the state hasn't committed to building specific projects yet.
Where crashes happen on Preston Highway
- Outer Loop, Fern Valley Road and Commerce Crossings, the three intersections the study flagged
- Center-lane left turns into businesses and side streets. See T-bone accidents and intersection crashes.
- Stop-and-go traffic near the Watterson and the Gene Snyder interchanges. See rear-end collisions and Watterson Expressway accidents.
- Bus stops and mid-block crossings, where people walk to transit with no crosswalk nearby. See TARC bus accidents.
- Truck traffic to and from warehouses, the airport and industrial areas. See our Okolona personal injury lawyer page.
Pedestrians on Preston Highway
Walking along Preston can mean walking on grass or in a turn lane where the sidewalk stops. Kentucky law requires drivers to yield to pedestrians crossing where there are no working traffic signals, and requires pedestrians crossing outside a marked or unmarked crosswalk to yield to vehicles (KRS 189.570). But even a pedestrian who crossed mid-block can recover if the driver was speeding, distracted or not watching. Kentucky's pure comparative fault rule reduces the award by the pedestrian's share instead of barring it. See our pedestrian accident lawyer page.
If you tripped on a broken sidewalk rather than being hit by a car, see sidewalk trip-and-fall claims.
Who is at fault in a Preston Highway accident?
Usually the driver who failed to yield, followed too closely or wasn't paying attention. Most Preston Highway crashes are decided on driver conduct, with evidence like business security cameras, witness accounts and vehicle data. Road design can play a part too, but because Preston is a state road, design claims run against the state through the Kentucky Board of Claims, with caps and a one-year deadline. See our road defect accident page.
If the driver left, see our hit-and-run accident lawyer page.
What to do after a Preston Highway accident
- Call 911 and get a police report.
- Photograph the cars, the intersection, the signals and any missing sidewalk or crosswalk.
- Ask nearby businesses to save their security video right away. Many systems record over in days.
- Get witness names, including bus riders and people in parking lots.
- Get medical care, even if you feel okay.
How Forman & Associates helps
We collect the video, crash reports and witness statements quickly, and we know how insurers try to shift blame onto pedestrians and turning drivers. We prepare cases for trial from the start. Larry Forman has tried 50+ jury trials and won 95% of them. See our car crash lawyer page for more.
Preston Highway accident FAQs
Is Preston Highway one of Louisville's most dangerous roads?
Yes. It ranks No. 9 on Louisville's Vision Zero High Injury Network, which tracks where people are killed or seriously hurt.
How many crashes happen on Preston Highway?
A state study counted 2,298 crashes, including 22 fatal crashes, on a seven-mile stretch of KY 61 from 2019 through 2023.
Which Preston Highway intersections have the most crashes?
The state's study named Outer Loop, Fern Valley Road and Commerce Crossings Drive as high-crash intersections.
Can a pedestrian recover if they weren't in a crosswalk?
Often yes. A pedestrian outside a crosswalk must yield, but a careless driver can still be mostly at fault, and Kentucky reduces rather than bars the award.
Who maintains Preston Highway?
Preston Highway (KY 61) is a state road maintained by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Claims about its design go to the Kentucky Board of Claims.
Hurt in a Preston Highway accident?
Let us get the video before it's gone. Get a free case evaluation or call (502) 931-6788. No fee unless we win.
This post is general information about Kentucky law, not legal advice.
