CINCINNATI – The full team designing and building the replacement for the Western Hills Viaduct is kicking off the next phase of the $398 million project with an in-person workshop in Cincinnati to address a range of engineering and construction details. 

The team, which includes more than 100 bridge construction professionals from a dozen organizations locally, regionally and from across the country, met in Cincinnati on Aug. 17 and 18.

“With the full team now in place, we will develop our final game plan needed to start construction,” said Bill Shefcik, project manager for the City of Cincinnati Department of Transportation & Engineering. “We will be finalizing our detailed designs and working through constructability challenges over the next two years in collaboration with our construction contractor and other professionals we need to make this transformative project a reality.”

Construction of the new bridge is expected to begin in 2025. The city and Hamilton County are leading the management of the replacement project.

“The magnitude of this project presents unique challenges that require consideration of multiple options and diverse viewpoints,” said Eric Beck, Hamilton County Engineer. “One of the biggest challenges will be planning how to build the bridge over a large, active railyard with 32 tracks. Working with the entire team from this point forward will guarantee every detail is considered and we will have a successful project.”

The team includes government agencies, construction contractors, cost estimators, designers, railroad companies and utilities. Specifically:

• City of Cincinnati Department of Transportation & Engineering
• Hamilton County Engineer’s Office
• Ohio Department of Transportation
• Federal Highway Administration and consultant Atkins Engineering
• Construction contractor, Walsh Kokosing Joint Venture and consultants COWI and Genesis
• Independent Cost Estimator, Kelly McNutt Consulting and consultants Stanton Constructability Services and KCI Technologies
• Designer, T Y Lin and consultants Jacobs Solutions Inc. and Strand Associates
• CSX Transportation and consultant Benesch
• Norfolk Southern Railway and consultant STV Inc.
• Duke Energy
• Greater Cincinnati Water Works
• Metropolitan Sewer District

The city recently completed demolition of a second building in the footprint of the new bridge along Spring Grove Avenue. This site just to the north of the existing viaduct will be the location for Duke Energy’s new electric substation. Construction of the new substation is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2024. Duke will finalize its designs over the coming year and relocate associated transmission lines.

About the New Bridge
The City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County are leading the effort to replace the 91-year-old Western Hill Viaduct, which connects to I-75 and carries 55,000 vehicles a day over the Mill Creek Valley and a large, active railyard with 32 tracks. The new bridge will be located 50 feet south of the existing viaduct and include a new interchange with I-75 to be built by the Ohio Department of Transportation.

The new bridge will be a single deck extradosed design that combines the major elements of cable-stay and steel girder bridges. It will include a protected, shared-use path on the south side and a sidewalk on the north side to improve neighborhood connections with the addition of pedestrian and bicycle access.

At an estimated cost of $398 million, the new bridge is the largest project the city or county has ever managed. The project is fully funded with state and federal grants and local-match contributions from the city and county. The city maintains the viaduct based on a long-term agreement with the county.