Ohio and Kentucky have awarded the progressive design-build contract for the $3.6 billion Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project to a joint venture of Chicago-based Walsh Construction and Westerville, Ohio-based Kokosing Construction, according to a July 27 news release.

The contractors will rehabilitate the existing double-deck bridge, which carries Interstates 71 and 75 and connects Covington, Kentucky, and Cincinnati, and build a new companion bridge to its immediate west. The project aims to improve approximately 8 miles of both interstates through Kentucky and Ohio, according to the release.

Approximately $3.1 billion will be spent on the design-build portion of the project. The remaining $500 million is allocated for improvements on a two-mile stretch of the I-75 corridor north of Linn Avenue in Cincinnati, including a new interchange for the Western Hills viaduct. 

The contract addresses 6 of the corridor’s 8 total miles, including 5 miles of Interstate 71/75 in Kentucky and one mile of Interstate 75 in Ohio. 

Primary goals include improving safety and traffic flow, correcting geometric deficiencies, and maintaining connections to key regional and national transportation corridors, according to the contractors.

In addition to Walsh and Kokosing, Dallas-based Jacobs Solutions will also play a role in the project. Jacobs' scope of work includes leading the design of the 1-mile Ohio segment, which encompasses the Interstate 75, Interstate 71 and US-50 interchange and more than 1.4 million square feet of bridge deck, according to the contractor.

Jacobs will also serve as the independent companion bridge engineer, performing design checks of the new river crossing, according to the company.

AECOM will serve as the project’s Lead Designer, the Dallas-based infrastructure firm announced Friday, and will provide comprehensive design and engineering services as well as project supervision. It will also serve as Engineer of Record for the new companion bridge.

National attention

Completed in 1963, the Brent Spence Bridge gained national recognition earlier this year as a symbol of $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funding. In January, President Joe Biden visited the bridge and called attention to its status as one of the most congested freight routes in the country, per Spectrum News 1. 

The bridge is also set to receive $1.385 billion in funding from the federal government’s Bridge Investment Program. Local news outlet LinkNKY reported that the Federal Highway Administration deemed the bridge in need of replacement in 1998.

Groundbreaking is set for this year, with substantial completion expected in 2029, according to the project’s website.