Jefferson Review

"Your Liberty is Our Interest"

Home /  Archives / Links / Quotes / Book Reviews / Advertise /Contact us / Subscribe / Calendar

Why Can’t We Build A Bridge

By Theresa Camoriano

For the twenty-one years I have lived in Louisville, people have been expressing a strong desire to build a bridge across the Ohio River.  One of the main commercial advantages Louisville has is its central location, so improving transportation in the Louisville area by building a bridge would be very advantageous in attracting and growing business.  It also would make life much more pleasant for many commuters and would allow for the development of areas that have been difficult to access in the past.  For many years, the project was successfully opposed by powerful and wealthy people in Prospect who did not want a bridge in their area.  To her credit, Anne Northup spearheaded the effort and moved the project along, past environmental impact statements and other planning stages.  Now it is time to begin building, and Kentucky says it does not have the money.  Why not?

There are several reasons why Kentucky does not have the money to build a bridge (or bridges).  First, the cost of building a bridge is ridiculously high, since it entails so many steps that have nothing to do with building a bridge.  For example, this project includes building a museum, building a very expensive underground tunnel to avoid harming the view of the rich and powerful folks who opposed the project, and jumping through other expensive hoops that do not contribute to the actual construction of a bridge.

In addition, Kentucky politicians want to spend road money helping their friends.  Laying down blacktop is how Kentucky politicians buy votes and campaign contributions.  If they spend the money on a bridge in Louisville, what will they use for greasing people’s palms?

Another reason it is difficult to come up with money for a bridge is that it will be built in Louisville, and Kentucky politicians believe in taking money from Louisville and spreading it around the state, not in allowing the engine that generates the wealth to actually reinvest in order to grow more wealth. 

The state’s politicians were willing to spend tons of money on a Louisville arena, which will benefit a few at the expense of many, but now that money is gone, and they are not willing to spend road money on bridges that actually will benefit large numbers of people.  This is a pity, because an arena is something that easily could be built by private money, if the desire were great enough, whereas building a bridge across the Ohio River has to be a government project.

That does not mean that the government cannot get creative in how it funds the bridge.  It could be a toll bridge, with user fees covering the cost.  With new technologies, it would be a simple matter for most commuters to establish an account and pay electronically, without having to stop at toll booths.  The state could contract with a private company to build and maintain the bridge and reap the toll money.  In that case, the company would have a great incentive to do a good job in order to keep the money flowing. 

Here’s hoping the politicians figure out a way to get the job done. 

Weather (Louisville) / Mapquest /  White Pages / Business Search / CNN / Dictionary / E-card / MSN