If you thought trying to get across the river on the Brent Spence Bridge was a pain in the ass before, changes coming this weekend aren't going to help matters.
From 10 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Sunday, northbound traffic on I-71/75 before the Brent Spence Bridge in Northern Kentucky will be decreased to one lane.
Then, starting at 5 a.m. Sunday, it will reopen to two lanes, but drivers will need to pick whether they're going to I-75 or I-71 before getting onto the bridge, because you won't be able to change lanes once you're on there.
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet says this fun new obstacle will be in place until Aug. 29.
“Once the work this weekend is completed, the new travel pattern will be in place and changing lanes on the bridge will not be possible,” said Cory Wilson, branch manager for the Cabinet’s Northern Kentucky office, in a release. “Traffic in the far left lane will proceed to I-75 and traffic in the far right lane will proceed to I-71. The two center lanes on I-71/75 northbound across the bridge will be closed.”
Southbound access to the bridge won't be changing; only the two right lanes remain open.
This is all part of a maintenance project on the bridge that is slated to be complete by Nov. 15.
In a release, City of Covington officials say they are "spreading the word on the new traffic pattern to try to alleviate some of the volume of vehicles that are leaving the interstate to avoid backups on the bridge and thus clogging local streets."
Other traffic woes to watch out for surrounding the Brent Spence this weekend?
- While teams set up work on Friday, access to I-75 northbound will be closed for a few hours, then reopen. After that, access to I-71 northbound will be shut off until 5 a.m. Sunday.
- There will be "rolling roadblocks" overnight on Friday on the Kentucky side "to hold traffic in 15-minute increments to allow crews to safely set the next traffic pattern on the bridge," says a release.
- Remember: The Fourth Street bridge entrance in Covington is closed.
Per the press release, Chief District Engineer Bob Yeager says the current bridge project is more than 50% complete and "inspection teams continue to confirm the sturdiness of the bridge."
The Brent Spence Bridge, a major connector between Cincinnati and Covington, has become less and less efficient for transportation over the years. A website for the bridge’s 2017 maintenance project states that the structure was originally built to carry 80,000-100,000 vehicles per day, but traffic in recent years has doubled to 160,000-180,000 vehicles each day.
In November, the Brent Spence Bridge was closed for about six weeks due to two semi-trucks crashing and causing a chemical spill. The closure caused major disruptions for commuters across the region until it reopened on Dec. 22.
Sign up for our weekly newsletters to get the latest on the news, things to do and places to eat delivered right to your inbox.
