The Lewis and Clark Bridge is a bridge that crosses the Ohio River northeast of downtown Louisville, Kentucky and is part of a ring road around the Louisville metropolitan area, connecting two previously disjointed segments of Interstate 265. It was known as the East End Bridge for 30 years since its conception and while under construction, and renamed by Indiana officials on the day of its opening, December 18, 2016.[2] The bridge provides for walking and bicycling. For motor vehicles, tolling began on December 30, 2016.[3]
The design for what was then known as the East End Bridge is the result of the $22.1 million, four-year Ohio River Bridges Study, which found that solving the region's traffic congestion would require the construction of two new bridges across the Ohio River and reconstruction of the Kennedy Interchange in downtown Louisville.
Limited land acquisition began in 2004. Construction costs totaled $242 million at the end of January 2017.[4]
On June 4, 2019, the two disjointed sections of I-265 were finally connected under AASHTO approval, with the Indiana State Road 265 designation decommissioned and replaced by I-265. However, the Kentucky Route 841 designation mostly concurrent with I-265 in Kentucky has remained.[5]
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Beilman, Elizabeth (December 18, 2016). "At last: East-end bridge, dubbed Lewis and Clark, opens to traffic". News and Tribune. Jeffersonville, IN. Retrieved 2017-01-05. Decades of anticipation for a direct connection between Prospect, Ky. and Jeffersonville were realized Sunday when officials celebrated the opening of the east-end bridge, dubbed the Lewis and Clark Bridge.
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Sirianni, Maura; Green, Marcus; Mitchell, Kyle (December 30, 2016). "Tolling begins on the Lewis and Clark, Lincoln and Kennedy bridges". WDRB. Retrieved 2017-01-03. During the first 12 hours of tolling, more than 52,000 vehicles crossed the three toll bridges in the RiverLink system, officials said.
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Bauer, Katie (March 3, 2016). "Resolution to name new bridge after Lewis & Clark approved". WAVE TV. Louisville, KY. Retrieved 2017-01-05. He doesn't think there will be any confusion when it comes to the new bridge and the Clark Memorial Bridge named after George Rogers Clark, William's older brother.
