Written by WCPO’s Christian LeDuc
President Joe Biden will be in Covington Wednesday to talk about the $1 trillion infrastructure deal that will improve the Brent Spence Bridge.
Ironically, his visit will create quite a traffic hassle.
All the details on his travel plans have not been released due to security concerns but we do know that the Brent Spence Bridge and the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge will be closed. The exact times and the extent of these closures have not been released.
Air Force One will be landing at CVG Wednesday morning, which means the presidential motorcade will likely have to travel on I-275 to get onto I-71/75 to get to Covington. No official route has been released but the last time he visited the Tri-State, he took the interstate all the way to Hamilton when he visited the region last spring.
If you do need to get across the river today, I-471 will likely be your best bet.
Last week, Ohio Governor Mike Dewine and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear announced that $1.6 billion in federal funding will be used for a companion bridge that will be built right next to the Brent Spence. This includes reworking I-71/75 on both sides of the river, along with some additional improvements to the current bridge.
“The fact that this bridge is being built without tolls is keeping millions of dollars in the pockets of Greater Cincinnati’s,” Covington Mayor Joseph Meyer. “We got what 50,000 people every day that cross the bridge to work in Cincinnati and $2 a toll each way that’s $2,000 a year per person.”
Wednesday’s visit will be a rare joint appearance with the president and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
