The Brent Spence Bridge And John Kasich

Middletown Journal:

Typically, the federal government foots 80 percent of the bill and the state takes care of the rest, according to Policisnki. And with the federal transportation bill scheduled to expire this month, funding remains uncertain.
Locally, about $500 million must be raised for construction of the project, which begins just south of Dixie Highway in Northern Kentucky and stretches just north of the Western Hills Viaduct interchange — about five miles of work in Kentucky and about three miles in Ohio.
The need for a new bridge is critical as it was originally designed for 80,000 vehicles per day, said Stefan Spinosa, the Ohio Department of Transportation’s project manager. Usage today tops 165,000 on the almost 50-year-old bridge and traffic volume is projected to reach 233,000 by 2035.
Construction for the Brent Spence Bridge is tentatively scheduled to begin in 2015 lasting through 2022 or 2023.

Later:

Politics, as much as the development and research of the project, weighs heavily on it will be paid for, too.
Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich’s office has said it’s studying whether the project is economically viable to back while Democrats, such as Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune and President Barack Obama himself have previously supported the need for a new bridge for economic recovery and jobs.
“It’s much more than just a transportation project. It’s essential to the nation’s economy because it services one of the significant traffic arterials connecting North America,” Portune told the JournalNews recently. “You can imagine how much it means to the region — this is the kind of project we need to get behind which will make a meaningful difference in our local economy.”

Kasich's office has said it's studying whether the project is economically viable to back?  WTF does that mean?  The bridge is almost 50 years old and grossly underdesigned for the current traffic, and the governor's office isn't sure if the project is economically viable?  You know, it is kind of hard to attract jobs if a business can't get products in and out of the state.  I have no clue what the governor's office is talking about.  This bridge will need replaced, and it will need to be replaced with a bigger bridge, you don't figure out if the project is economically viable, you figure out how to pay for it.  It is that simple.