Louisville Breaks Ground on Highland Park Bike Park

The mountain bike park is being built under Interstate 264 in Louisville's Highland Park neighborhood.

Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in National Parks

Wide view of fresh asphalt pump tracks being laid in a cleared space beneath a gray concrete highway overpass, with orange cones and an excavator at the edge. — Louisville officials broke ground on a mountain bike park beneath Interstate 264 in Highland Park, funded with $750,000 in Metro Government money. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Louisville officials broke ground on a mountain bike park under Interstate 264 in Highland Park. Louisville Metro Government has allocated $750,000 to the project.

Why it matters

The site was a vacant, under-utilized space under a highway, and Mayor Craig Greenberg said the city aims to transform it into a community attraction. The park also reflects a neighborhood that has been largely wiped out by highway and airport expansion.

Louisville Metro Government has allocated $750,000 to the project, which is being built along Old Park Boulevard near Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. Phase one includes two asphalt-covered pump tracks for intermediate and advanced riders, an asphalt jump track, and reserved space for a volunteer-built beginner pump track.

The players

Craig Greenberg

Craig Greenberg is the mayor of Louisville, Kentucky, who said the vacant space under the highway is being transformed into a community attraction.

Friends of Bike Highland Park

Friends of Bike Highland Park is a community group that has pushed for the development of the mountain bike park in the Highland Park neighborhood.

Mike Purvis

Mike Purvis is a local cycling advocate who said advocates expect to ride at the park in spring.

The details

Phase one of the park includes two asphalt-covered pump tracks for intermediate and advanced skill levels and an asphalt jump track, with space reserved for a volunteer-built beginner pump track. Bike Highland Park, named for the neighborhood it sits in, is being developed with the push of the group Friends of Bike Highland Park.

Nov. 5, 2026: Groundbreaking and press conference for the bike park.
Fall 2026 into early 2027: Site and earthwork construction.
Spring 2027: Asphalt work begins, and the park is planned to open.

Travel Outlook

The park follows a pattern of cities reclaiming land under urban highways for recreation after decades of road and airport expansion reshaped neighborhoods like Highland Park. It positions Louisville's riding infrastructure as an amenity for residents rather than a byproduct of highway construction.

Riders in Louisville can expect the park to open in spring 2027, with asphalt pump and jump tracks for intermediate and advanced skill levels. Beginner riders will have to wait for the volunteer-built pump track, as its timing was not specified.

The takeaway

Riders planning spring 2027 visits to Louisville's new Highland Park bike park should monitor construction progress, since the opening timeline depends on the fall 2026 earthwork and early 2027 asphalt schedule.

What happens next

Construction of site and earthwork is scheduled from fall 2026 into early 2027, with asphalt work to follow in spring 2027 and the park planned to open that spring.