KENTON COUNTY, Ky. — After shutting down northbound lanes on Interstate 71/75 in Northern Kentucky to all vehicle traffic, in the aftermath of an abrupt Brent Spence Bridge closure, Kentucky transportation officials will reopen a portion of the expressway to local traffic overnight on Friday.
The new local traffic flow will involve a single lane with access to half a dozen exits between the Interstate 275 interchange and the Fifth Street/KY 8 exit just before reaching the bridge northbound.
UPDATE: A single lane of I-71/75 northbound will reopen from the I-275 interchange to 5th Street (Exit 191) overnight. @DrivingNky pic.twitter.com/0dqvmB5IOz
— KYTC District 6 (@KYTCDistrict6) November 14, 2020
"In order to establish this new traffic pattern, several lane closures will be put into place on I-71/75 NB at the KY 18 exit," Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 6 officials tweeted. The KY 18 exit is in Florence.
At ~ 12P Sat, the following traffic pattern will remain in place indefinitely:
— KYTC District 6 (@KYTCDistrict6) November 13, 2020
- The 2 left lanes on I-71/75 NB will be closed at KY 18
- As NB traffic approaches the I-275 split -
(1) Local & I-275 WB traffic should be in left lane
(2) I-275 EB traffic should be in right lane
Transportation officials did not immediately elaborate on how law enforcement would monitor the situation to ensure compliance.
The new traffic pattern will come after three full days of massive traffic disruptions across Northern Kentucky and in downtown Cincinnati after a fiery, two-semitrailer crash compelled officials to close the bridge early Wednesday. Since, Northern Kentucky highways and urban surface streets have flooded with diverted passenger and commercial traffic.
WCPO will update this story.
