COVINGTON, Ky. — Traffic backups near a bridge connecting Covington and Newport are becoming a growing frustration for some drivers.
The concern centers around changes connecting Covington to 11th Street in Newport near the Licking Valley Girl Scout Bridge.
A viewer named Craig reached out, calling it a growing bottleneck.
“While bike lanes are great, the bike lanes, related traffic-pattern changes, and the subsequent channeling of traffic to the 11th St. Bridge have created an excessively painful traffic mess in Covington,” Craig wrote in an email.
Watch below to see where the issues are popping up:
Drivers said traffic backs up where multiple lanes merge into one near a stop sign approaching the bridge.
Cory Wilson with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said much of the congestion is tied to the closure and demolition of the nearby 4th Street Bridge.
“You know, the majority of the congestion that we’re seeing on that corridor, a lot of it probably has to do with the 4th Street bridge closure,” said Cory Wilson. “There’s a lot of traffic that otherwise would use the 4th Street Bridge that’s now being redirected.”
While some drivers point to the lane changes as part of the problem, Wilson said those changes were made intentionally to improve safety.
“We very deliberately made this change to improve bicyclists and pedestrian safety,” said Wilson.
Wilson said there are no plans to reverse the traffic pattern changes.
“We see congestion kind of like we do everywhere else: your morning and mostly your evening commutes,” said Wilson.
State officials said the current traffic impacts are temporary and tied to the 4th Street Bridge demolition project, which is expected to continue through 2028.
Officials said they are continuing to monitor traffic patterns and make adjustments where possible.
Drivers with traffic concerns or road issues they would like investigated can contact KJ Jacobs at KJ.Jacobs@wcpo.com and let him know “What’s Driving You Crazy?”
