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Dive Brief:
- A new federal The lawsuit questions the environmental impact of the $3.6 billion Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project connecting Cincinnati and northern Kentucky.
- Four Cincinnati-area groups filed a 34-page lawsuit Oct. 16 that names six defendants, including the DOT, the Federal Highway Administration, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Ohio transportation officials and Kentucky.
- The lawsuit alleges that transportation officials did not sufficiently study the environmental aspects of the project, or its impact on surrounding communities, which are home to mostly non-white residents. It also says the design doesn’t do enough to include alternative modes of car travel, such as walking, cycling and transit.
Diving knowledge:
The project has become a symbol of the Federal Infrastructure Investment and Employment Act. President Joe Biden visited in 2023 and drew attention to its status as one of the country’s most congested freight routes and a weak link in the supply chain.
According to the lawsuit, planners completed an environmental assessment and issued a finding of no significant impact in 2012. Planners reaffirmed the FONSI in 2015, 2018 and again in May. In January, they also released a Supplemental Environmental Assessment and then in May, a Revised Supplemental Environmental Assessment, indicating that the agencies saw no need for a more extensive environmental study. However, the RSEA notes that the project will affect wetlands, forest habitat, water quality and more.
The plaintiffs are the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for Transit and Sustainable Development, Civic Cincinnati, Ride the Cov and Queen City Bike, all groups that promote environmentally friendly alternatives to car travel. The groups say the approval of the project is illegal because its impacts have not been sufficiently studied and mitigated.
“By refusing to acknowledge that the project will have significant impacts on the human environment, the defendants have arbitrarily and capriciously refused to prepare an EIS, which would require them to meaningfully consider reasonable alternatives,” the lawsuit said , such as greater investment in transit and charging tolls to reduce demand.
In response, Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray, one of the defendants, said in an email: “A priority of the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project is to provide an inclusive process that improves the surrounding communities while providing a that will bring more safety and less congestion to the region. We are aware of the filing against the federal and state agencies. No further details can be shared at this time.”
Other parties named in the lawsuit did not respond to Construction Dive’s request for comment or declined due to pending litigation.
A massive project
The Brent Spence Bridge is an eight-lane, two-story span that carries I-71 and I-75 as well as local traffic over the Ohio River between Cincinnati and Covington, Kentucky. The project involves building a 10-lane companion bridge and rehabilitating the existing one. The new bridge will carry traffic from I-71 and I-75, and local drivers will use the existing span, which will be reduced to six lanes.
The project was approved in 2022 with a $1.6 billion IIJA grant, and construction is scheduled to begin early next year. According to the project’s website, Ohio and Kentucky will share other costs, with each paying for focus work in their respective states.
A joint venture between Chicago-based Walsh Construction and Westerville, Ohio-based Kokosing Construction is slated to build the new sectionwhile Dallas-based Jacobs will provide design and engineering services. AECOM, also based in Dallas, is the lead designer.
It will be built in phases and is scheduled to be completed in 2032, according to the project’s website.
