LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky and Ohio plan to seek $2 billion in federal funds to help pay for a massive overhaul of the Brent Spence Bridge corridor near Cincinnati without using tolls.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an updated agreement Monday that DeWine said puts the states in “a perfect position” to land the money to start building a $2.8 billion project that mirrors Kentucky’s approach to the Kennedy Bridge about a decade ago.
Plans call for a retrofitted Brent Spence Bridge, which carries Interstates 71 and 75 between Covington, Kentucky, and Cincinnati, as well as a nearby companion bridge and work on approach roads on both sides of the Ohio River.
The money would come from the federal infrastructure bill that Congress passed last year, setting aside $39 billion for bridge projects. The legislation also includes $17.5 billion in national grants for large projects like the long-awaited Brent Spence work.
Beshear and DeWine signed the bistate agreement — called a memorandum of understanding — at a ceremony in Covington attended by state and local elected officials. A copy wasn't immediately made public.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (right) and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (left) in Covington, Ky., Monday February 28, 2022.
“The memorandum spells out our obligations and positions us to apply for these federal dollars, which will allow us not only to build this bridge -- it's going to let us build this companion bridge without tolls,” Beshear said.
Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray said the states will submit their grant request in the coming months, ahead of an expected decision by the U.S. Department of Transportation by the fall.
Jack Marchbanks, director of the Ohio Department of Transportation, said the project’s goal is to seek bids for the work by fall of 2023. A news release from the two states said a 2024 construction start is possible.
Marchbanks said a five-year construction schedule, including a rehabilitation of the existing span, is a “conservative estimate.”
Led by the state’s northern Kentucky delegation, the Kentucky General Assembly banned tolls on interstate crossings between Kentucky and Ohio in 2016. Lawmakers previously allowed tolls for the Kentucky-Indiana bridges built in Louisville as part of the Ohio River Bridges Project.
This story may be updated.
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