On Saturday, the Ohio Department of Transportation and its contractor TGR celebrated the near completion of the eastbound I-90 George V. Voinovich Bridge.
ODOT Director Jerry Wray, many local elected officials, the Voinovich family and the public came together to celebrate.
In November 2013, the pair of bridges was officially dedicated the “George V. Voinovich Bridge” after one of Ohio’s most distinguished public servants. Born and raised in Cleveland, Voinovich held numerous public posts including U.S. Senator, Ohio Governor, and Cleveland Mayor.
According to an ODOT release, the George V. Voinovich Bridge is actually a pair of bridges that replaced the single, nearly one mile long, 1950’s-era “Innerbelt Bridge” and, beginning at 11 a.m. Sunday, the eastbound bridge will be partially open to traffic.
“Combined, the two bridges represent an investment of well over a half-billion dollars,” said ODOT Director Jerry Wray. “Since Gov. John Kasich took office, ODOT has invested more than $12 billion into Ohio’s transportation network.”
The $566 million investment makes the replacement of the old Innerbelt Bridge the largest bridge replacement project in Ohio’s history and when you combine the two bridges, it is the largest investment in a single project in the history of ODOT, according to the release.
The eastbound bridge construction started with the demolition of the previous structure, which came down on July 12, 2014 from a controlled explosive demolition, the release stated.
The bridge is expected to open in its entirety by late October 2016.
