By Greg Paeth
NKyTribune senior reporter
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear and Ohio Gov. John Kasich unveiled Wednesday what they call a cost-saving plan that could reduce the pricetag of the Brent Spence Bridge replacement plan and push the project forward – with tolls — as quickly as possible.
The governors said transportation departments in both states have been asked to scrutinize the $2.6 billion Brent Spence plan in an effort to reduce costs for a project whose pricetag increases by $7 million for each month of delay.
Beshear pointed out that a similar bridge project in Louisville had a $4.1 billion cost estimate before he and then-Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels told their transportation departments to re-think the project and trim the pricetag. The result was a $2.3 billion project, Beshear said.
But both governors stressed that the project won’t progress without tolls and that there’s little chance that the federal government will step in and provide major funding for a new bridge.
The proposal outlined by the governors also calls for substantial discounts of as much as 50 percent on tolls paid by motorists who would be classified as “frequent users” of the bridge. Beshear said there’s no way to determine now how much the tolls would be.
The governor said the need for tolls is “grounded in reality. We will need both tolls and gas tax dollars to pay for such a major investment in our future and if our federal partners – and there’s a lot of talk that our federal partners might be able to come up with the money to build these bridges — and both Gov. Kasich and I are here to tell you that if that happens, if they come up with some dollars, we will be thrilled and we will gladly accept the money and add it to the revenue structure,” Beshear said. “(But) we’ve been given every reason to believe that we shouldn’t expect that to happen.”
Transportation departments in both states have been asked to submit reports on cost savings by March 30. The governors said legislatures in Ohio and Kentucky probably would have plans to vote on next year.
Kasich said Ohio is ready to move ahead and that it has a financing plan and support for tolling to cover the cost of a new bridge, a major renovation of the existing bridge and construction of new highway interchanges for I-75 and I-71, which merge into one route for southbound traffic on the interstates.
Both Kasich and Beshear urged business leaders who attended the press conference to try and convince Northern Kentucky lawmakers to support tolls. At this point, legislators from the region have been opposed to bridge constructions plans that call for tolls.
For the bridge to be built with tolls, the Kentucky legislature would need to pass legislation that would allow for a so-called public-private partnership for the project.
Beshear would have to work with lawmakers on the legislation and avoided any direct criticism of state senators and representatives from Northern Kentucky.
Kasich, however, wasn’t as restrained.
He said opponents of tolling are “burying their heads in the sand” and urged the toll supporters to “work with these legislators who have, for whatever reason, some of them operate — without any question in my mind — operate with blind and extreme ideology and are stopping real progress.”
“You cannot just wait on Washington when you have a problem like this. I want our families to be safe when they cross the bridge. I want the cost to be as low as it can be,” Kasich said.
“We are very pleased to see the bipartisan commitment that Governor Kasich and Governor Beshear are making on the Brent Spence Bridge Project,” said Tom Williams, CEO of North American Properties and co-chair of the Build Our New Bridge Now Coalition, an organization that wants to move the project ahead quickly and supports tolls. “Thanks to their collaborative leadership, we are that much closer to rebuilding this critical highway corridor and improving safety in our
community.”
Northern Kentucky United, an organization opposed to tolls, didn’t seem to be impressed with the plan unveiled by the governors.
The group staged a protest on the sidewalk outside the entrance to the riverfront office building where the Metropolitan Club is located.
“We’re glad to hear that Governors Beshear and Kasich have realized this project needs to be revisited, but what they have offered today is only a small step in the right direction,” Joe Meyer, a Covington resident and spokesman for the group, said in a prepared statement.
“Tolls are not the answer. A $1 toll on the bridge is pure fantasy at this point. They have no finance plan and cannot possibly know what the toll will be. . . The small businesses in the region will be negatively impacted, and the cost of goods and services will go up for everyone. The direct and indirect costs to Northern Kentucky will be several hundred million dollars annually,” Meyer said.
“Public-private partnerships for transportation projects are falling out of favor across the nation,” said Meyer, a former state representative, state senator and member of Gov. Beshear’s cabinet. The Governors of Illinois and Virginia have recently called a halt to these types of megaprojects pending a careful review of taxpayer protections in public-private partnerships.”
The governors’ appearance today at Covington’s Metropolitan Club, which overlooks the bridge to the west, was their first public appearance together for a little more than two years.
Northern Kentucky’s state legislators have all said they oppose any plan to charge a toll for the new bridge. State Rep. Arnold Simpson, whose district includes much of Covington, has been one of the most outspoken opponents of tolls.
Earlier this month, four of the five members of the Covington City Commission said they are opposed to any plan that would impose tolls on motorists for a variety of reasons, including increased traffic on the other two bridges that span the Ohio in Covington: the Clay Wade Bailey and the Roebling Suspension Bridge.
Toll opponents contend that many drivers will opt to avoid tolls by using the other two bridges.