Changes coming for drivers on west side

For a year, drivers on the west side of Cincinnati have dealt with traffic as construction crews work on the Waldvogel Viaduct Replacement Project.

Project manager Richard Szekerish says the more than three-year, $55 million project is on schedule and budget.

He also says in early October, drivers will start using the new eastbound Elberon ramp bridge, as well as new lanes on River Road.

"River Road will still be one lane in each direction," Szekerish said. "But it gives us the opportunity to move traffic over so we can begin dismantling the existing viaduct here and we can move on with the rest of the project."

It's a project that Szekerish says has come a long way, considering the Elberon ramp is just six weeks away from completion. He also warns that doesn't mean the entire project is anywhere near finished.

"That's just the eastbound Elberon ramp bridge," Szekerish said. "We've still got to build the westbound Elberon and the eastbound, westbound Warsaw.”

The projected completion date for the project is November of 2014, meaning brake lights and slow commutes are something to get used to.

Szekerish says it will be nice when it’s finished.

"It will be designed and constructed to new design standards," Szekerish said. "So it won't be so tight and restrictive as it is now. It won't have all those piers that are obstructions."

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