Brent Spence Bridge

The owner of the Cincinnati Reds isn't just concerned about sports -- he has his eye on transportation issues, too. Bob Castellini owns a produce distribution company and says replacing the Brent Spence Bridge should be a primary objective for the area.

This weekend, work takes place on the Brent Spence Bridge as two events cause some street closures downtown. 

There's good news coming for commuters who use the Brent Spence Bridge. All four lanes of northbound traffic will reopen early Friday morning, along with all the on and off ramps. Project spokeswoman Betty Hull says it comes after two months of bridge maintenance.

Correction: This story has been updated to clarify Hull's comments.

Work on the Brent Spence Bridge began about two weeks ago. In phase one of the rehabilitation project, two lanes were closed on the northbound deck and two more are closed on the southbound deck. The temporary change can make it seem like traffic has doubled on the bridge.

A poll shows local support for transportation spending. The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber polled 400 voters in Hamilton county, 200 voters in Butler, Clermont, and Warren counties in Ohio, and 200 voters in Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties in Kentucky, and Dearborn county in Indiana.

A group that coordinates regional transportation efforts - like funding a new Brent Spence Bridge - is in Washington D.C. this week. Members of the OKI Regional Council of Governments meet each year with lawmakers from the three-state region.

Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune believes there could be federal money coming for the replacement of the Brent Spence Bridge. 

Ohio and Kentucky have been looking for funding without counting on federal assistance.  But Portune says right now both the House and the Senate are working on a multi-year transportation bill that could help.

There are some Northern Kentucky leaders – those who oppose tolls to pay for a replacement of the Brent Spence Bridge - who are saying that Ohio’s governor, John Kasich, is no longer welcome in their part of the state.

And they don’t seem to care which bridge he crosses to get there.

It seems that Ohio’s Republican governor, who is not the shy and retiring type when it comes to speaking his mind, left some noses out of joint Wednesday when he hooked up with Kentucky’s Democratic governor, Steve Beshear, at Covington’s RiverCenter.

Ohio and Kentucky will share the costs of building a new bridge between Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.  The Brent Spence Bridge has been deemed functionally obsolete, carrying more traffic than intended. 

When Governors John Kasich and  Steve Beshear hold a news conference in Covington Wednesday afternoon they are expected to elaborate on their plan to share the cost equally between Ohio and Kentucky. 

Many people are also wondering about a toll, something Northern Kentucky business leaders are against, but the governors say is necessary.

A study released in October 2013 projected $1 to $2 for cars; $3 to $6 for light trucks; and $5 to $10 for tractor-trailers.

The governors of Ohio and Kentucky plan to meet early next year to talk about replacing the Brent Spence Bridge. Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear says they're going to try to find a way to get the project moving.  He says any more delays will be costly.

Using a 3 percent inflation figure from the Federal Highway Administration, Beshear says continued delays will add about $7 million per month to the construction price tag.  “Folks, that’s $84 million a year,” he says.

Taxpayers will pick up the tab for an $8 million study of the impact of a reconstructed Brent Spence bridge on traffic, noise and the effect tolls will have on minorities and low-income persons.

The Ohio Controlling Board released the money Monday at the request of the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT)

ODOT spokesman Brian Cunningham said the state of Ohio is in the process of working out a “memorandum of understanding” with the state of Kentucky. Once that is finished, Cunningham said, Kentucky will reimburse Ohio for half of the $8 million.