Construction on new bridge connecting Cincinnati to Kentucky to begin this spring
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Construction on Brent Spence companion bridge begins this spring; cable-stayed design planned.
- First phase estimated at $4.05 billion; $1.6B federal award and state cost splits.
- Project aims to ease congestion, reroute I‑71/I‑75, and have the bridge built by 2031.
The first phase of construction for a companion bridge connecting a busy stretch of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky will begin this spring, said Gov. Andy Beshear.
The construction, called the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project, will add a cable-stayed independent deck bridge next to the heavily trafficked bridge by the same name and serve as its companion.
“I’m proud to announce a major milestone: The work is set to begin on the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project, which will deliver safer travel for our families, create good-paying construction jobs, boost national commerce and ease congestion for those commuting between Ohio and Kentucky,” Beshear said in a news release.
Officials released the design of the new bridge last summer. The new bridge is similar to the design of the Abraham Lincoln Bridge in Louisville. Both decks of the bridge will be supported by a cabling system, and there will be no steel connecting the two decks.
Travelers heading northbound on the companion bridge will use the top level, giving them an unobstructed view of the Cincinnati skyline and the bridge’s design.
Crews will also reroute Interstate 71 and Interstate 75 traffic over the new companion bridge during the first phase of construction.
The bridge is expected to be completed by 2031, and approach work to the bridge substantially complete by 2033, Beshear said.
“From securing federal and state funding to ensuring project plans are moving forward, my administration has worked hard to deliver on this promise, and now we are months away from beginning the meaningful work that will get this job done,” Beshear said in the news release.
The project is partially federally funded by a bipartisan infrastructure bill, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. In December 2022, the project was awarded $1.6 billion, with most of the money going toward building the companion bridge.
The first phase of construction is expected to cost $4.05 billion, and each state will cover the cost of their own highway work and split remaining costs of the companion bridge, Beshear said. Kentucky will pick up $1.7 billion of the bill.
The estimate was verified by two independent contractors and considered the significant rise in costs for construction materials, goods and services in recent years. Beshear said the Federal Highway Administration’s National Highway Construction Cost Index suggests that highway construction costs rose nationally by 61% from 2020 to 2025.
Subsequent portions of the project are still being planned, according to Beshear.
The Brent Spence Bridge was built in 1963. It was originally constructed to carry around 80,000 vehicles a day, but the daily Interstate 75 and Interstate 71 traffic load has reached 160,000 vehicles in recent years.
Because I-75 is a key freight corridor stretching from Canada to Florida, traffic slowdowns also affect commerce throughout the eastern United States. A previous news release from the federal transportation department said the bridge is the second-worst truck bottleneck in the country. It carries more than $400 billion in freight per year over the Ohio River.
The project also includes improvements to the existing Brent Spence Bridge, redesigned ramp configurations throughout the eight-mile corridor, a new storm sewer system to reduce flooding and improve local roads, and enhanced pedestrian and bicycle paths in the area of the existing and new bridge.
