Steel deterioration means lane closures, weight restrictions on another Ohio River bridge

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet has implemented weight limits for emergency vehicles and temporary lane restrictions on the Interstate 275 Carroll Cropper Memorial Bridge over the Ohio River in Boone County to ensure public safety and preserve the structure.

The transportation cabinet said in a release on Tuesday that while the bridge remains safe for passenger vehicles, a recent inspection found deterioration in some of its steel.

New emergency vehicle weight limits are:

• Single Axle: 16 tons.

• Tandem Axle: 23 tons.

• Gross Weight: 31 tons.

The weight reduction will not impact commercial vehicle traffic due to semitrucks having more axles to distribute the weight.

Overweight vehicles or loads wider, taller, or longer than the legal maximum size, called over-dimensional vehicles, are not permitted on the bridge at this time due to current lane restrictions.

Transportation cabinet bridge engineering analysis shows the reduced weight limit and lane restrictions are needed as a precaution and to prevent further damage until the structure can be repaired, the release said.

The repairs will be added to a previously scheduled steel repair project that is already under contract and is expected to begin in January 2025.

As of Tuesday, the right lane in both the eastbound and westbound directions are closed. The right lane in the westbound direction begins at the top of the hill and spans the length of the bridge.

The transportation cabinet released an update Wednesday, announcing that a traffic shift has been implemented on the eastbound side. Drivers on I-275 eastbound will start in the left lane at the Indiana approach and then shift to the right lane.

• This change provides a safeguard to allow contractors to repair an expansion joint — a key bridge component that allows for thermal expansion/contraction due to changes in weather to prevent concrete from cracking.

• Concrete barriers are expected to be installed this afternoon, Dec. 18, to protect workers on I-275 eastbound while these repairs are being made.

Westbound Traffic (drivers heading from Kentucky to Indiana):

• A single right lane closure is in place on I-275 westbound. This lane closure begins at the

What’s Next?

• The current traffic setup will remain in place until the expansion joint repair is finished. At that point, a temporary single lane closure will return for a portion of the eastbound bridge.

Looking Ahead:

• Floor beam repairs will also be scheduled before the steel repair project begins. Once these repairs are made, current weight restrictions for emergency vehicles will be lifted.

• Lane closures in both directions will continue until the full-scale steel repair project kicks off in January 2025.

Stay tuned for updates! KYTC will share more details, including schedules and traffic impacts for floor beam work and the full-scale steel repair project, in the coming weeks.

Updates on the upcoming steel repair project timeline will be released once the contractor schedule is finalized.

On Tuesday, Cincinnati City Councilman Mark Jeffreys proposed using the Interstate 275 loop to reduce traffic delays caused by the partial closure of the Daniel Carter Beard Bridge following a Nov. 1 fire. It is unclear how the emergency vehicle weight limits and lane closures might affect that proposal.

Motorists can get Northern Kentucky road construction updates on the District 6 Roadshow website.

This story was updated to add a video.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Lane closures, weight restrictions on another Ohio River bridge

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