Photo: Courtesy: Governor Beshear's Office
At a ceremony Thursday, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez and a host of federal, state and local officials broke ground on the first construction phase of the major project.
In 1969, the new Ford truck plant opened in Louisville, Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, and Kentucky and Indiana began talking about building a new bridge over the Ohio River.
Officials finally broke ground Thursday for one of two new bridges that are part of the Ohio River Bridges Project along the banks of the river in Jeffersonville, Indiana.
The over $2 billion project will create over 4,000 jobs and relieve traffic congestion for Louisville and southern Indiana.
Governor Mitch Daniels says he has never been more certain about the benefits of a project.
“More safety, less congestion, better quality of life, but also more jobs and growth and opportunity on both sides of the river,” he says.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer says in the past members of the project may not have been singing in tune, or from the same sheet of music.
“But today I’m very happy to say, with the leadership of both governors here, that we are singing on key, in perfect harmony,” he says.
The new bridge which will connect Utica, Indiana; just north of Jeffersonille with Prospect, Kentucky; just north of Louisville, is slated for completion in 2017.
