However, in late 2016 with the completion of the Lewis and Clark Bridge, the formerly separate segments of I-265 in Kentucky and Indiana have been connected to provide another detour route.

I-264 begins four miles (6.4 km) west of Downtown Louisville at I-64 just east of the Sherman Minton Bridge, which links Southern Indiana with Kentucky as it crosses the Ohio River.

The other segments of the expressway were also resurfaced in a $1 million safety project, previously rain caused severe accidents.

As early as the 1960s, there were suggestions to rebuild the Watterson Expressway, as its exits were to close together and the more minor ones were extremely congested.

The freeway had outlived its useful purpose and had numerous characteristics that defined it as a blight on Louisville: deteriorating overpasses, buckling pavement, deficient and too closely spaced interchanges, and rampant congestion.

Dozens of bridges were reconstructed and widened, and the majority of the interchanges were redesigned and rebuilt from the ground up from US 31W east to Shelbyville Road.

A typical deficient interchange along I-264 was the I-65, Kentucky Exposition Center, and Louisville International Airport exit.

The interchange today has been rebuilt and features numerous flyovers and collector–distributor lanes, making it safer though not necessarily easier to navigate.

After several years of planning, in early 2003, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) began a reconstruction project on this segment of Interstate Highway stretching from the US 31W interchange northwest to just east of Bank Street.

A concrete surface several inches thick was constructed on mainline roadway and access ramps, a new median barrier was formed, new lighting fixtures were installed, 37 bridges were rehabilitated, 380 new roadway signs were posted, and all guardrails were replaced as part of the 7.6-mile (12.2 km) project.

On April 1, 2010, the Kentucky General Assembly designated the western portion to be renamed as the Georgia Davis Powers Expressway.