Brent Spence Bridge: How Road Expansion and Heavy Trucks Impacts Traffic Congestion
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) plans to execute the $3.8 billion proposed Brent Spence Companion Bridge project it claims will reduce the traffic congestion on the existing Brent Spence Bridge.
While this looks like a major infrastructural milestone, it’s coming at the detriment of locals whose homes and businesses will be demolished for the planned 10-lane expansion. That’s additional pain to the noise and air pollution they’ll suffer during and after the project.
Experts and activists believe that expanding the highway won’t reduce traffic influx and congestion; rather, it will attract commuters and trucks to the already busy bridge.
After due diligence and interaction with members of the Cincinnati community—one of the host communities where the bridge lies—it’s clear that the better decision to alleviate their challenges would be to expand transit and not the highway. In this article, we’ll discuss the current heavy truck counts, what this means, and its direct effects on the people.
Brent Spence Bridge Average Daily Heavy Truck Count
What Is the Brent Spence Bridge
The Brent Spence Bridge is a link for the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana (OKI) region and became available to motorists in November 1963. Over the years, many modifications have ensured that the bridge remains in optimum condition.
Sadly, these modifications are not exactly what the bridge needs, as it is considered “functionally obsolete.” It is clear from the previous modifications that there have been no significant improvements in the traffic congestion and other troubles that the users of the bridge face.
It’s also worth knowing that the bridge is safe for use and not structurally deficient. However, it’s a major source of pain to the locals because of the increasing number of out-of-state trucks which use the bridge to connect with other states like Ohio and Indiana.
With alternative routes like the I-275 loop, these trucks can still reach their destination without subjecting themselves and members of the host communities to avoidable hardship. Let's have a good look at the movement of trucks along the bridge over a few years to help you understand the rationale for our stance.
Daily Heavy Truck Count (2005 - 2021)
To have a proper analysis, we would only consider the daily heavy truck count over a defined period, that is, from the year 2005 up until 2021.
At the start of 2005, only about 17,120 trucks moved along the bridge, and the number steadily increased to a whopping 22,030 vehicles per day.
By 2013, the average number of vehicles that moved along the bridge was 22,340.
In 2014, the daily vehicle count reached an all-time high, recording a whopping 22,452 vehicles daily, but it hit a major dip by the next year.
By 2015, only 17,253 vehicles were moving on the bridge daily, and the number increased slowly and steadily in the subsequent years.
2016 saw 19,804 vehicles commuting on the bridge daily, and by 2017, there were 20,169 commuters on the bridge daily.
By 2018, there was another significant drop in vehicles moving on the Brent Spence Bridge, dropping to 14,124 vehicles per day.
In 2019, there was a slight increase to 14,166 vehicles per day, but by 2021, it had dropped to 13,824 daily.
Reasons For The Significant Drop In Daily Brent Spence Bridge Commuters
From the analysis above, it is clear that the two years when the number of commuters dropped significantly were 2015 and 2018.
The most plausible reason for the reduction of vehicles on the Brent Spence bridge in 2015 was the construction of I-75 north of the bridge. This construction began in 2011 and extended from 2.4 miles north of the bridge (the Western Hills Viaduct) to Paddock Road (about 9.4 miles north of the Brent Spence Bridge) for a total of 7 miles.
This construction caused multiple lane shifts, which drivers found difficult to navigate and consequently slowed down traffic. Since other routes like the Daniel Carter Beard Bridge, the Carroll Cropper Bridge, and the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge were available, most vehicles avoided the Brent Spence Bridge.
The availability of other routes automatically caused the vehicles using the Brent Spence Bridge to reduce as there was a significant increase on these other bridges. Unfortunately, the construction has no end as there have been conflicting interests regarding the bridge's repairs.
Notably, the Brent Spence Bridge enjoyed a level of freedom when commuters resorted to using other bridges during construction exercises. When the construction was over, the figures spiked again, as seen in 2016.
Further repair exercises owing to various factors and the increased traffic congestion saw reduced patronage from 2018 to 2021. But if the planned companion bridge construction goes through as planned, we may see a higher rate of traffic congestion.
How Will the Highway Expansion Directly Increase the Traffic Congestion
As clearly explained in another research by UC-Davis Scholar Susan Handy and cited by the California Department of Transportation, highway expansion doesn’t necessarily relieve traffic congestion. Rather, it leads to a phenomenon known as “induced demand.”
In the theory of Induced demand, every increase in highway capacity encourages more people to drive, leading to more car purchases and more vehicles on the road. So efforts to help commuters save hours by widening their roads is an invitation for more commuters from far and near to ply the expanded road.
According to another paper published by the Transportation Research Record, every 1% increase in a highway’s capacity leads to a 0.29% - 1.1% traffic increase in the long term (about five years and up to 0.68% traffic increase in the short term (approximately one-two years).
The KYTC plans to restripe the existing eight lanes to six and add another bridge of ten lanes, leading to a total of sixteen lanes. In all, it’s a 100% increase tantamount to a 29% - 110% traffic increase in the long run.
But traffic congestion is not the only consequence of road expansion. More recent research showed a 10 - 15% increase in fatal auto crashes on Kentucky roads in 2021, owing to an increase in traffic.
The concerned roads are Kentucky urban highways and rural collector roads that feed into the main rural highway. With these alarming stats, what do you think will be the fate of residents of the host communities if OKI succeeds in securing the expansion of the Brent Spence Bridge?
The Solution to Traffic Congestion: Expand Transit, Not Highway
An effective solution to the traffic congestion on the Brent Spence bridge is to expand transit and not build highways. Providing better means of public transportation and freeing up the highways will reduce motorists' many problems.
So, instead of spending $3.8 billion from taxpayers, investments should be made to provide modern, safe, and more convenient public transportation. It will encourage residents to leave their vehicles at home and move to various places in a more controlled and organized transport system.
Expanding transit will also positively impact the environment; fewer motorists will equal fewer vehicles on the bridge and less noise pollution. There will also be fewer gas emissions, air pollution, and fatal accidents.
Generally, transit is more appealing to road users in areas that are often very congested. Any inconsistency with the transit system can result in increased levels of congestion. An example is the Los Angeles transit workers’ strike in 2003, which led to a 47% increase in traffic congestion.
The Next Step
The Coalition for Transit and Sustainable Development just want a better and safer means of transportation for the citizens. Everyone should be free to move around and arrive at their destinations safely without unnecessary delay.
That is why we would love for the concerned people of Cincinnati to join hands with us to make it possible. You can lend your voice to this cause by joining the “Expand Transit, Not Highways” movement. Click this link to learn more about the movement and how you can contact your elected official to enforce the change we need.
