COVINGTON, Ky. — Over $1.6 billion dollars in federal grants will go a long way to make a decades-old infrastructure dream a reality. That vision is the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project. And city officials have said these funds will go directly toward the planned upgrades.
Matt Angerer, senior sales manager at the nearby Radisson Hotel Cincinnati Riverfront in Covington provided his thoughts on the project. “It’s been twenty years, I think, since engineers said it needs to be done, so it’s definitely time,” Angerer said.
Angerer also explained that the hotel’s location right by the bridge means added convenience for current and potential hotel guests. For a little background, the Brent Spence Bridge was built in the 1960s to cater to about 80,000 vehicles a day. According to local officials, it now carries nearly double that daily.
That increased traffic volume and related slowdowns are what civil engineers hope to ease with the project. The goal is to repair roadway networks and the bridge itself while adding a companion bridge. Groundbreaking on this massive project is slated for late 2023, which could affect businesses and people nearby, such as the hotel.
“We’re actually hoping to bid on some of that business. Construction, engineers, they’ll working around the clock. What better location for them to look than us?” Angerer said.
Other businesses will feel the effects as well. RiverCenter Collision is one such operation. Employees there said they’re looking to relocate.
“If I heard correctly, our whole parking lot will be removed for the bridge. They’ll be using the area, I guess, for the bottom part of the structure,” RiverCenter Collision estimator Dallas Wheeler said.
The project planners expect construction to take place through the rest of 2020s, slated to be complete in 2029. “It’ll be nice to see what the wonders of engineering can do,” Wheeler admitted.
Angerer is certainly positive about the upcoming work. “We’re excited! It’ll be a huge thing to have done in the area,” he said.