CINCINNATI — Kentucky and Ohio are collecting proposals until March 31 for construction and design of the newly-funded Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project, according to a press release from state officials.
The contract companies can submit proposals for includes six of the eight miles of the total project. It will include five miles of the I-71/75 corridor in Northern Kentucky and one mile of I-75 on the Ohio side of the river. The additional miles will stretch further into Ohio and will be done under separate contracts, the press release said.
The more than 600-page request for proposals describes the project as stretching from just south of Dixie Highway in Kentucky to Linn Street in Ohio.
Officials said the design-build team could be selected as soon as May, with the goal of breaking ground by the end of 2023; the completion goal for the project is slated for 2029.
The contract will entail improvements made to the existing Brent Spence Bridge, alongside its future companion bridge to the west.
The press release describes the proposal process as using a "progressive design-build" delivery method. It states that selection for this project won't be focused on a lowest-bidder approach, but rather the best overall approach and value.
"This allows the design-build team the opportunity to collaborate with the bi-state project team and local stakeholders early in the process, so potential risks can be assessed and mitigated while there is still an opportunity to influence them," reads the press release.
The request for proposals calls for the highway to be widened by one additional lane in each direction throughout the corridor, in addition to the improvements to the Brent Spence Bridge and the construction of the companion bridge.
The design of the new companion bridge, as highlighted in the request, can be proposed by the companies submitting, but officials are looking for an arch bridge design or a cable-stayed bridge design.
The redesign of the Brent Spence Bridge will reduce the number of lanes on each deck from four to three, while increasing the inside and outside shoulders.
“Just a month ago, we celebrated a historic $1.635 billion in federal grant funding to build the new bridge crossing over the Ohio River and improve the entire Brent Spence Bridge Corridor with no tolls,” said Governor Andy Beshear. “This is a huge step that gets us one step closer to fulfilling the dreams of thousands of travelers by providing traffic relief, increased safety and a boost to our nation’s commerce.”
When the project is completed, officials said the new companion bridge will bear interstate traffic for I-71/75 while the Brent Spence Bridge will predominantly shoulder local traffic.
In January, President Joe Biden and other lawmakers visited Covington to celebrate the roughly $1.635 billion in funding the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project received from the Federal Infrastructure Law, signed by Biden in November 2021.
"For decades, people have talked about the Brent Spence Bridge," said Biden in January. "But folks, the talking is over."
The project, which will reshape lanes on the existing Brent Spence Bridge while building a companion bridge right next to it, has been estimated to cost a total of $3.1 billion.
While Biden's Infrastructure Law is providing nearly half that total, Beshear said Kentucky has amassed $250 million for the project and DeWine said Ohio's saved contributions could be close to $1 billion.
Opened 59 years ago, the Brent Spence Bridge has officially needed a replacement since at least 1998, when the Federal Highway Administration determined it was no longer accommodating traffic needs. It is considered "functionally obsolete" and carries twice the amount of vehicles across the Ohio River each day that it was designed to accommodate.
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