- Newport, Covington, Kenton County and Campbell Counties leaders are asking the state for a infusion of cash to speed up the 4th Street Bridge project.
- The ask comes as bridge closures and construction threatens to squeeze businesses
- The ask is one of several ways local communities are trying to address the issue
The mayors of Covington and Newport, as well as the judges/executive of Kenton and Campbell Counties, are asking the state for an infusion of cash that would purportedly accelerate the timeline for completing the construction for a new KY-8 Bridge, known more commonly as the 4th Street Bridge.
“An allocation of as little as $1.5 million would allow for the use of precast concrete components, which would accelerate installation and reduce weather-related delays, ultimately shortening the project by approximately 30-45 days,” reads the letter, dated Nov. 21, 2025. “Similarly, an additional allocation of approximately $5 million would make it possible to expand contractor shifts, allowing additional crews to work extended hours. This approach could reduce the overall construction period by as much as six months.”
Jointly penned by Covington Mayor Ron Washington, Newport Mayor Tom Guidugli, Jr., Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann and Campbell County Judge/Executive Steve Pendry, the letter is addressed to Kentucky Rep. John Blanton and Kentucky Sen. Jimmy Higdon, both of whom serve on legislative committees for transportation.
The current bridge connecting Newport and Covington across county lines was built in 1936, and even though it’s still capable of handling basic vehicle traffic, it’s not up to modern standards. The bridge is set to close to make room for construction in January with completion times scheduled for sometime in the fall of 2028.
“The KY 8 corridor is a crucial transportation link for residents, workers and
freight traffic throughout Northern Kentucky and beyond,” the letter continues. “Thousands of individuals from Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties, as well as from the Cincinnati metropolitan area, rely on this route every day to access jobs, commercial districts and essential services.”
Coupled with the impending construction of the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project and its attending closures, local leaders have been working to come up with ways to soften the blow local businesses and communities might suffer as a result of the closures.
“We’re trying to do the best we can to bring this to the state’s attention that the sooner they get that done, it would be better for our residents and our businesses,” Mayor Washington told LINK nky.
The City Covington has already begun brainstorming ways to address this problem with its Bridging the Gap initiative, an update for which City Manager Sharmili Reddy gave to the city’s board of commissioners Tuesday night.
Reddy doled out some possible moves the city could take to ensure the community made it through the closures, in addition to the sorts of asks from state authorities that appear in the letter.
One strategy, Reddy said, is coordinating with local businesses, organizations and community leaders to come up with novel solutions to the problem.
“We don’t think that we have all the answers and all the solutions, and we need everybody to bring their solutions to the table and hopefully partner with us on some of these ideas,” Reddy said, later saying that meetings with local stakeholders thus far suggests that “everybody wants to help.”
Another big part of the initiative, Reddy said, is coming up with ways to market Covington’s businesses so that people from out of town would be more willing to travel there. Reddy also emphasized the importance of way-finding for pedestrians, i.e. making easy-to-find paths for people to get around in the midst of the closures.
“We have to make it easy for folks outside of the region to come into the city and go into our businesses,” Reddy said.
Other things that could draw in more business included special community-wide or district-wide events and new approaches to transportation.
“We’re even talking about, what do people feel great about getting into?”Reddy said. “Is it golf carts? Is it really a shuttle? What would people feel comfortable getting into and going from one district to the other?”
Reddy’s presentation was, by her own admission, very broad strokes, but it served as a way of keeping the board informed about reality of the situation.
No official action took place at Tuesday’s meeting. LINK nky will report more on this situation as it develops.