U.S. Grant Bridge - Current U.S. Grant Bridge

Current U.S. Grant Bridge

Contracts for the new U.S. Grant Bridge were given in the spring of 2001. Construction was expected to be complete in June 2004, but work fell behind schedule due to inclement weather, unusual flooding of the Ohio River, and the partial sinking of a floating construction barge which carried one of the cranes used to work on the center span of the bridge. The date of completion was moved to October 16, 2006.

In addition, many downtown business owners were upset over the delays and often criticized the construction company, C.J. Mahan Construction Company, for delays on days when it was sunny and the river levels were average. It should be noted that the bridge was critically underdesigned and not constructible until C.J. Mahan stopped construction and awaited a near complete redesign by the design consultant. Another complaint was that this is the first major bridge project the construction company that was awarded the construction contract has worked on. However, C.J. Mahan has constructed other large bridges in Ohio and West Virginia. Local business owners demanded that ODOT pay local businesses $8 million in lost profit.