Western Row Road and I-71 Interchange Improvements

Construction Timing

The Western Row interchange is open – ahead of schedule and on budget!

Before this project moves to the ‘completed projects’ column, a few additional pieces of work will take place:

Resurfacing on I-71 between Exit #24 (Western Row Road) and Exit #25 (Kings Mills Road) in both directions;
Resurfacing on Innovation Way at the intersection of Innovation Way and the new ramps;
Installation of a new bike path from the I-71/Innovation Way ramp intersection north to Western Row Road and from the intersection of Innovation Way and Western Row Road east to Kings Island Drive;
Landscaping throughout the project area; and
Completion of other miscellaneous items.

The overall completion date for the project is June 1, 2019.

Previously, there was only a partial interchange in this area, with one exit ramp from northbound I-71 and one on-ramp to southbound I-71. The following ramps now support better travel throughout the area:

New ramp – westbound Western Row Road to northbound I-71
New ramp – eastbound Western Row Road to northbound I-71
New ramp – southbound I-71 entrance ramp from Innovation Way
New ramp – southbound I-71 exit ramp to Innovation Way
Existing ramp – southbound I-71 entrance ramp from Western Row Road
Existing ramp – northbound I-71 exit ramp to Western Row Road

To learn more about the Western Row Road and I-71 Interchange Improvements, please view the following video:

Project Benefits

Western Row Road is a key access point along the I-71 business corridor, and is an important hub for economic development and job creation. This project will increase mobility, improve safety and expand access to business and recreational destinations in this area.

Significant planning and design work has also gone into pedestrian and bike paths that will be built – some new and some an expansion of existing paths.

The importance of improved connectivity in southwest Warren County and northeast Hamilton County cannot be overstated. With the work at the Fields-Ertel & Mason-Montgomery Road Interchange completed in 2015, studies indicate that the Western Row improvements will reduce I-71 southbound off-ramp traffic at Fields-Ertel by 17 percent. In addition, northbound I-71 on-ramp traffic at Fields-Ertel is expected to decrease by 24% with the completion of improvements at Western Row.

This coordinated regional program will support Warren County’s growing business and tourism economy.

Project Background & Informational Documents:

The 2005 Southwest Warren County Transportation Study identified the improvement of the Western Row Road interchange as a high-priority project.

Five conceptual alternatives were developed. The completion of the 2010 Conceptual Alternatives Study (CAS) recommended three alternatives (Alternatives 2, 4, and 5) be advanced for further study. Upon further consideration, Alternative 2 was eliminated due to the number of traffic signals and insufficient level of service on Western Row Road. A new alternative was created, Alternative 6, to undergo further study. Project planners held a public involvement meeting in the summer of 2013 and gathered public feedback on each alternative. Alternative 6 was advanced as the preferred alternative. The design process has begun, Phase 1 is fully funded and construction began in 2016. Phase 2 is fully funded, and construction began in 2017.

PROJECT DOCUMENTS

Recommended Preferred Alternative

To read more about the process that was followed to develop the current recommended Preferred Alternative for the Western Row Road and I-71 Interchange Improvements project, please visit the Warren County Transportation Improvement District’s website: http://wctid.us/Projects/WesternRow.aspx.

3-D renderings

Overview
East of I-71
West of I-71

Click the image below to view the Western Row Road and I-71 Interchange Improvements Video (as presented during 2014 public involvement).

Projects