Columbus, Ohio – Both the governors of Ohio and Kentucky, Mike DeWine and Andy Beshear, have announced that they have collaborated in order to submit a joint application for approximately $2 billion in federal funding for the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project.
During the month of February, the governors made public their intention to make a funding request to the United States Department of Transportation. They are looking for a grant from the federal government in the amount of $1.66 billion, which would cover about 60 percent of the remaining project expenditures of $2.77 billion.
In a press release that was issued to announce the request, DeWine referred to the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor as a “vital centerpiece to the interstate system of the United States.”
“With the current supply chain crisis in our country, the issue of ensuring that this major transportation corridor stays open and moving has never been more urgent,” said DeWine.
As part of this project, a new bridge will be built next to the current Brent Spence Bridge in order to provide improvements in both the flow of traffic and the level of safety. In addition, an eight-mile length of corridor will be upgraded by both states on each side of the bridges.
According to the statement, the cost of the new bridge will be equally divided between the two states, and each state will be responsible for the necessary construction on its own side of the border.
While the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) makes a decision on the financing request submitted by the governors of Ohio and Kentucky, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) will move ahead with the project’s engineering work.
Interstates 71 and 75 are connected through the Brent Spence Bridge, which spans the Ohio River. The bridge can now carry more than 160,000 cars per day. When it was first built, it could carry between 80,000 and 100,000 cars per day.
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